Polymer-polymer interaction, in the presence of a solvent as measured by viscometry

Dilute solution viscometry experiments have been carried out in five ternary polymer systems solvent(1)/polymer(2)/polymer(3). Values of the specific viscosity of polymer (3) in a ‘binary solvent’ formed by polymer(2) + solvent(1) have been used to determine the compatibility of the polymer blends. Krigbaum and Wall formalism has been used to predict compatibility which relies on an interaction parameter that depends on the concentration, weight fraction and molar mass of each polymer. To reduce the dependences and to clarify the criterion of compatibility, a parameter independent of polymer (3) composition and molar mass has been deduced. This parameter shows the same behaviour with polyme…

A Qualitative Analysis of Secondary Mechanisms in SEC of Polymers Through the Mean Value of the Viscosimetric Exponent

Abstract Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) universal calibration curves for poly(dimethylsiloxane), polybutadiene and poly(2-vinylpyridine) samples have been obtained in columns packed with cross-linked polystyrene gel using cyclohexane, toluene, benzene, dioxane and tetrahydrofuran as eluents at 25°C. The eluents exhibit different thermodynamic quality for the polymeric solutes and for the gel matrix which is reflected in the values of their Mark-Houwink-Sakurada exponents a. The plots of log(hydrodynamic volume) versus retention volume for the polymeric solutes in different eluents are displaced to higher retention volumes than that of THF-polybutadiene (ideal SEC), evidencing the exist…

Cure kinetics of a cobalt catalysed dicyanate ester monomer in air and argon atmospheres from DSC data

A kinetic analysis of the cyclotrimerisation reaction of a dicyanate ester monomer catalysed by cobalt(II) acetylacetonate and nonylphenol in air and argon atmospheres has been carried out by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Dynamic and isothermal DSC scans as well as the glass transition temperature are the experimental data obtained. From isothermal scans a higher cyanate conversion in air than in argon was obtained. The cyanate conversions are satisfactorily described with a second-order kinetic equation in the kinetically controlled region, and by m-order (m<1) equation after vitrification is reached. Activation energies determined by different procedures agree among them, showi…

Optimization of Polymer Blue-Light-Emitting Devices by Introducing a Hole-Injection Layer Doped with the Molecular Nanomagnet [Mn12O12(H2O)4(C6F5COO)16]

FTIR isothermal cure kinetics and morphology of dicyanate ester resin/polysulfone blends

Abstract The isothermal cure of a dicyanate ester monomer by “in situ” Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) has been investigated. The degree of cyanate conversion and the kinetic parameters have been determined for cobalt catalyzed and uncatalyzed resin as well as for polysulfone (PSF) modified systems at different curing temperatures. The cyanate conversion increases with the increment of temperature and with the addition of a catalyst, but it does not vary with the addition of PSF. In all the systems studied, the rate of reaction showed a second-order dependence on the cyanate concentration in the kinetically controlled stage. Moreover, the addition of PSF generates a matrix wi…

Kinetic parameters of a cyanate ester resin catalyzed with different proportions of nonylphenol and cobalt acetylacetonate catalyst

The isothermal cure of a dicyanate ester monomer has been investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) in the presence of different quantities of a catalyst system formed by nonylphenol (NP) and cobalt (II) acetylacetonate (Co(AcAc)2). Two sets of experiences were studied. Firstly, the NP composition was varied from 0 to 10 per hundred resin (phr) and secondly, the Co(AcAc)2 loadings were changed at 2 phr of NP. It has been observed that the cyanate conversion increases significantly after the first addition of the metal catalyst and, also, at the same time the thermal stability improves. Moreover, the kinetic data have been fitted with a second-order equation respect to the cyan…

Upconversion nanoparticles with a strong acid-resistant capping

Water-dispersible upconversion nanoparticles (β-NaYF:Yb,Er, UCNP) coated with a thin shell of a biocompatible copolymer comprising 2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA) and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulphonsulphonic acid (AMPS), which we will term COP, have been prepared by multidentate grafting. This capping is remarkably resistant to strong acidic conditions as low as pH 2. The additional functionality of the smart UCNP@COP nanosystem has been proved by its association to a well-known photosensitizer (namely, methylene blue, MB). The green-to-red emission ratio of the UC@COP@MB nanohybrid exhibits excellent linear dependence in the 7 to 2 pH range as a consequence of the release of the d…

Effect of conductivity of hole injection layer on the performance of a blue light emitting solution processable OLED

The performance of blue emitting OLED devices, using a polyspiro as blue light emitting polymer, were studied as a function of the conductivity of a novel hybrid hole injection material. The hole injection material is based on a polyarylamine using a molecular magnet as oxidant. The charge density and the luminance of the devices changed considerably with increasing conductivity of the hole injection layer. The change in device performance can be attributed to a change from a hole limited device to a balanced charge carrier device and eventually to an electron limited device. The performance of the optimized device configuration is significantly improved with respect to a device making use …

Investigation of compatibility of a dicyanate ester monomer and polysulfone by size-exclusion chromatography and viscometry

The influence of solvent on the compatibility behaviour of Arocy B10, a cyanate ester monomer, and polysulfone (PSF) was investigated by means of dilute solution viscometry and of the preferential solvation parameter at 25 °C. The ternary systems under study are: tetrahydrofuran/Arocy B10/polysulfone (PSF), N,N-dimethylformamide/Arocy B10/PSF and dichloromethane/Arocy B10/PSF. Values of the specific viscosity of PSF in a ‘binary solvent’ formed by Arocy B10 + solvent have been used to determine the compatibility of the polymer blend Arocy B10/PSF. An interaction parameter Δb that depends on concentration has been determined. The preferential solvation parameter was measured by size-exclusio…

Preferential solvation of a dicyanate ester monomer and poly(sulfone) in different organic solvents by size-exclusion chromatography.

Preferential solvation parameters A in the ternary systems solvent (1) -monomer (2) -polymer (3) were determined as a tool to measure the compatibility between the cyanate ester monomer Arocy B10 and poly(sulfone), PSF, in the presence of three organic solvents: tetrahydrofuran, dimethylformamide and dicloromethane. The A parameter was measured by size-exclusion chromatography at different monomer-to-polymer ratios. The quantitative evaluation was rigorously made at polymer-diluted conditions. PSF was found to be preferentially solvated by the monomer. Concerning the solvent used, systems containing tetrahydrofuran showed the strongest solvation, the lowest A values being those obtained in …