Conformational, optical, electro-optical, and dynamic characteristics of cross-linked poly(N-acryloyl-11-aminoundecanoic acid)

Abstract

Polymerizable surfactants now attract a great interest due to high potential of their practical application as components of pseudostationary phase in micellar chromatography, drug carriers, and “building blocks” for molecular design of nanoparticles and nanostructured polymer materials, for encapsulation of various biological preparations. In the present work, we have studied poly(N-acryloyl-11-aminoundecanoic acid) (cross-linked comb-like polymer). Cross-linked polymers were obtained via copolymerization of the surfactant bearing double bond in hydrophobic tail with hydrophobic bifunctional cross-linker in micellar solution. Of special interest was the comparison between cross-linked and non-cross-linked polymers and influence of alkaline medium on characteristics of these samples. Non-cross-linked polymers were obtained by hydrolysis of the cross-linked product (treating with NaOH). The mixture of cyclohexanol and dioxane (1:1 volume ratio) was used as a solvent. Detailed studies of the obtained polymers by viscometry, dynamic light scattering, flow birefringence, and equilibrium and non-equilibrium electric birefringence were performed. It was established that during cross-linking process, two types of bonds are formed (the ones inside individual molecules and between several polymer chains). It was shown that cross-linked macromolecular nanoparticles can be transformed into comb-like polymers.