This talk will discuss the relationship between intermixing of polymer chains and morphology of materials based on interpolyelectrolyte complexes. The case of polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) is considered for electrostatically assembled films that exhibit nonlinear growth - nlPEMs. Measurements of dry and wet film thicknesses indicated that nlPEM films were highly swollen in aqueous environment. Probing the film internal structure using neutron reflectometry showed that nlPEMs were interdiffused yet stratified. The degree of intermixing between neighboring layers and film swelling could be controlled not only by salt concentration, but also through application of drying between the layer deposition steps. Chain interdiffusion is also considered as a morphology-defining factor for the case of nanoparticles and nanocapsules that could spontaneously form in solutions of two interacting polymers through the recently reported all-aqueous nanoprecipitation technique.

Functional nanocoatings and nanocapsules: from chain intermixing to controlled morphology

254th National Meeting (2017)

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