The self-assembly of Pluronic-diacrylate block copolymers F127DA and L121DA in the protic ionic liquid ethylammonium nitrate (EAN) is studied via small-angle neutron scattering. Analogous to the non-acrylated Pluronics [1] (F127, L121), F127DA/EAN and L121DA/EAN solutions form spherical and wormlike micelles, respectively. We found that these morphologies remain unchanged upon crosslinking the solutions in presence of a photo-initiator. Crosslinking of concentrated F127DA/EAN solutions produces soft elastomers (ionoelastomers) with remarkable large elongation at break and high ionic conductivity, whereas the cross-linked L121DA/dEAN solutions are much more brittle. This difference can be explained as the highest crosslinking density in L121DA, compared to F127DA. The tensile properties and in-situ microstructure evolution during uniaxial extension of the ionoelastomers are measured using the Sentmanat extensional rheometer (SER) mounted in the SANS instrument NG-7 at the NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR). Uniaxial deformation induces micelle alignment in the L121DA/EAN solutions and a transition from isotropic face-centered cubic lattice grains to a hexagonal close packed crystal structure in the F121DA/EAN. Both transitions are reversible after unloading. C. R. López-Barrón, D. Li, N. J. Wagner, J. L. Caplan. Macromolecules, 2014, 4 (47), 7484-7495.

Structure and tensile properties of cross-linked Pluronic-diacrylate copolymers /ethylammonium nitrate iono-elastomers

251st National Meeting (2016)

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