Solid-state NMR analyses of the structure and dynamics of polymers in the different states

Abstract

This paper reviews our recent investigations of the structure and molecular motions of synthetic polymers in the different states, which were mainly carried out by solid-state 13C or 2H NMR spectroscopy. First, the crystalline-noncrystalline structure is characterized in detail for metallocene-catalyzed linear low density polyethylene, which was isothermally crystallized from the melt. Secondly, the characteristic chain conformation, the alternate trans and rapid trans-gauche exchange conformation, is revealed for the spacer methylene sequence in the frozen liquid crystalline region for thermotropic liquid crystalline polyurethane, which was crystallized from the isotropic phase through the nematic liquid crystalline phase. Thirdly, different types of splittings of CH resonance lines, which will be induced mainly by the formation of intramolecular hydrogen bonds in the triad sequence, are shown in the frozen solution states for poly(vinyl alcohol) samples with different tacticities. It is finally pointed out by solid-state 2H NMR analyses that both distributions in flip frequency and in flip angle should be taken into account for the precise characterization of the phenylene flip motion in glassy poly(ethylene terephthalate).