Microdoughnuts: Polymer toroidal particles such as the one shown in the left picture have been prepared by a capillary microfluidic technique. Droplets of polymer solution undergo non-uniform solidification to form the anisotropic polymer particles. By incorporating functional materials inside the polymer network, functional toroidal particles (center and right images) can be tailor-made for sp...

Gel becomes an important class of soft materials since it can be seen in a wide variety of the chemical and the biological systems. The unique properties of gel arise from the structure, namely, the three-dimensional polymer network that is swollen by a huge amount of solvent. Despite the small volume fraction of the polymer network, which is usually only a few percent or less, gel shows the ty...

Poly(fluorene-alt-thiophene) (PFT) is a conjugated polyelectrolyte that self-assembles into rod-like micelles in water, with the conjugated polymer backbone running along the length of the micelle. At modest concentrations (∼10 mg/mL in aqueous solutions), PFT forms hydrogels, and this work focuses on understanding the structure and intermolecular interactions in those gel networks. The network...

Nano-sized FePt capsules with two types of ultrathin shell were fabricated using a template method for use in a nano-scale drug delivery system. One capsule was composed of an inorganic-organic hybrid shell of a water-soluble polymer and FePt nanoparticles, and the other capsule was composed of a network of fused FePt nanoparticles. We demonstrated that FePt nanoparticles selectively accumulate...

The network structure of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels obtained by freezing-thawing cycles was investigated by solid-state (1)H low-field NMR spectroscopy. By the application of multiple-quantum NMR experiments, we obtain information about the segmental order parameter, which is directly related to the restrictions on chain motion (cross-links) formed upon gelation. These measurements ind...

Nanostructured materials based on colloidal particles embedded in a polymer network are used in a variety of applications ranging from nanocomposite rubbers to organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells. Further, polymer-network-mediated colloidal interactions are highly relevant to biological studies whereby polymer hydrogels are commonly employed to probe the mechanical response of living cells, wh...

Acrylic polymer that is highly stable against chemicals and is a good choice when concrete is subject to chemical attack. In this study, self-compacting concrete (SCC) made using acrylic polymer, nanosilica and microsilica has been investigated. The results of experimental testing showed that the addition of microsilica and acrylic polymer decreased the tensile, compressive and bending strength...

Polyaniline and polyamide (nylon 6,6) nanocomposites with Silva were prepared by in-situ oxidativepolymerization of aniline monomers in the presence of Ag salt Nano particles of silver (NPs) were symthesieedby controlled reduction of Ag+ ions kith sodium borohydride at room temperature. Nylon 6,6 wax loaded withAg nanoparfieles by erdrapment of Ag+ ions into the polymer network, followed by red...