Functional Diblock Copolymers for the Integration of Triboluminescent Materials into Polymer Matrices

Abstract

AbstractThis work describes the synthesis and use of new diblock copolymers to integrate functional inorganic particles into a polymer matrix. These diblock copolymers were synthesized by nitroxide‐mediated polymerization (NMP) from styrene and two styrene‐like monomers with protected functional groups for the later connection to the functional inorganic material. It was possible to keep the polydispersity of the block copolymers around or below 1.2 and to preset the length of the functional block to about 20 monomers or 10 mol‐% of monomers. The groups for the surface functionalization (amino groups or chelating ligands) were obtained in their free form by polymer analogous reactions. As an example of functional inorganic materials, two highly triboluminescent materials were synthesized and investigated: an europium complex that is sensitive to fracture only and a manganese‐doped zinc sulfide that is also sensitive to reversible deformations. The interaction of the functional block copolymers with these triboluminescent crystals could be proved by (i) selective adsorption on surfaces coated with the block copolymer, (ii) by copolymer‐mediated transfer of the crystals from water to a chloroform phase and (iii) by the homogenous embedding of the crystals in a polystyrene (PS) matrix.magnified image