Self-assembly and thermal behavior of amphiphilic di-block copolymers of poly(methyl methacrylate)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PMMA-b-PEO)

Imad-Ud-Din, Zia Ur Rehman, Mohsan Nawaz, Ali Bahader, Rukhsana Bibi, Imad Uddin, Qudrat Ullah Khan, Gareth James Price, Tariq Bashir

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

Two amphiphilic di-block copolymers with composition of PMMA118-b-PEO45 and PMMA25-b-PEO45 have been synthesized and characterized by NMR and FTIR spectroscopies. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of synthesized copolymers in toluene has been determined. The variation in CMC of both polymers was recorded under the influence of temperature. Interestingly, it was found that CMC decreases with increase in the polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) chain length and increase in temperature. A decrease in Gibbs free of micellization (ΔGmic) energy was found in the range of (− 17.3 to − 20.4), and increase in the entropy of micellization was observed in the range of (26.4 to 29.4) mol−1 at temperature in the range from 293 to 323 K with 10 K increment, while enthalpy is independent of temperature. From thermal analysis, it was concluded that degradation temperature slightly increases as the PMMA length increases. This is probably due to difficult diffusion of thermal energy across the entangled chains of PMMA.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1845–1859
Number of pages15
JournalPolymer Bulletin
Volume80
Issue number2
Early online date5 Mar 2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 28 Feb 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The authors are thankful to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan for providing financial support.

Funding

The authors are thankful to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan for providing financial support.

Keywords

  • Block copolymer
  • Micellization
  • Polymerization
  • Self-assembly
  • Synthesis

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Polymers and Plastics
  • Materials Chemistry

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