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Micelles from self-assembled amphiphilic copolymers are highly attractive in drug delivery, due to their small size and hydrophilic stealth corona allowing prolonged lifetimes the bloodstream thus improved bioavailability. Polylactide (PLA)-based copolymer micelles key candidates this field, owing well-established biodegradability biocompatibility of PLA. While PLA-b-poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)...

Aqueous catalytic polymerization may seem like a contradiction at first sight. The high water sensitivity of Ziegler or Phillips catalysts applied commercially for the production of polyolefins is well known. However, water offers a unique combination of properties as a medium for polymerization reactions: A high heat capacity, which enables an effective transfer of the heat of polymerization. ...

Reversible Addition–Fragmentation chain Transfer (RAFT) polymerization has emerged as one of the most versatile reversible deactivation radical polymerization techniques and is capable of polymerizing a wide range of monomers under various conditions. One of the most important factors governing the success of a RAFT polymerization is the fraction of living chains at the end of the reaction, whi...

In general terms, submicron particles can be prepared either by disintegration of larger entities, or by synthesis from small building blocks such as atoms, ions or molecules. By comparison to disintegration techniques, the latter approach provides efficient access to particles down to the nanometer size regime; and it can allow for the controlled synthesis of particles in terms of size, size d...

Radical-mediated thiol-yne step-growth photopolymerizations are utilized to form highly cross-linked polymer networks. This reaction mechanism is shown to be analogous to the thiol-ene photopolymerization; however, each alkyne functional group is capable of consecutive reaction with two thiol functional groups. The thiol-yne reaction involves the sequential propagation of a thiyl radical with e...

Self-healing chemistry used for damage repair have not previously been demonstrated for free-radical polymerization pathways. However, this chemistry is important for addition polymers such as poly(methyl methacrylate) used in bone cement and epoxy vinyl ester used in dental resins. Self-healing biomaterials offer the potential for safer and longer lasting implants and restoratives by slowing o...