Sander Driesen, Valentino Atella, Kristi Kiick, Louis M. Pitet and Geert-Jan Graulus
{"title":"Effect of sulfation on a tough hybrid hydrogel network","authors":"Sander Driesen, Valentino Atella, Kristi Kiick, Louis M. Pitet and Geert-Jan Graulus","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00013K","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00013K","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Hybrid hydrogels can mimic the exceptional stiffness of tough native tissues (<em>e.g.</em>, articular cartilage). However, many of these tough hybrid hydrogels currently lack bioactive moieties. Therefore, our work focuses on introducing sulfated alginate into a tough poly(acrylamide-<em>co</em>-acrylic acid)/alginate hybrid hydrogel network. This modification introduces the potential for effective tissue interactions and allows further diversification through chemical transformations. These hydrogels are synthesized <em>via</em> the radical-mediated polymerization and covalent crosslinking of acrylamide and acrylic acid. The covalent network is fortified with a second ionically crosslinked sulfated alginate network. FTIR, <small><sup>13</sup></small>C-NMR, and elemental analysis confirmed a degree of sulfation of 42.5%. Mechanical testing showed that hydrogels with a sulfated alginate content of 2 wt% exhibit comparable compressive stiffness (up to 230 kPa) to native articular cartilage. Cyclical mechanical testing revealed the network's resilience and remarkable toughness. These results suggest the hydrogels’ potential as cartilage mimics and support their additional investigation <em>in vitro</em>.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 624-636"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00013k?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
P. A. Parvathy, Sriparna De, Manjinder Singh, Gaurav Manik and Sushanta K. Sahoo
{"title":"Functional self-healing aldehyde-derived nanoparticle-crosslinked gelatin/PNIPAm-based adhesive gels†","authors":"P. A. Parvathy, Sriparna De, Manjinder Singh, Gaurav Manik and Sushanta K. Sahoo","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00038F","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00038F","url":null,"abstract":"<p >The combination of lower critical solution temperature (LCST) and upper critical solution temperature (UCST) polymers provides varying dissolution to the system, with tunable physiochemical properties. In the current work, injectable, fluorescent, and thermo-responsive poly-<em>N</em>-isopropylacrylamide (PNIPAm)-gelatin nanocomposite gels were prepared by combining non-covalent interactions and Schiff base chemistry. The incorporation of aldehyde-based nanoparticles (2.5–10%) facilitated the crosslinking of the matrix <em>via</em> the formation of imine linkages with gelatin, which significantly reduced the pore size of the gels from 30–40 micron to 4–5 μm. The temperature-dependent viscoelastic properties showed that the storage modulus increased significantly above 40 °C, which confirmed the thermosensitive behaviour of the gels owing to the combined effect of PNIPAm and gelatin. Higher storage modulus over loss modulus for all crosslinked gels indicates the elastic behaviour of the gels. The introduction of imine linkages offered instant self-healing features and the nanoparticles provide photoluminescence to the polymeric gel system. Furthermore, the tackiness offered by gelatin enhances the adherence to human skin and the gels are found to be biocompatible towards fibroblast cell lines (L929) and are promising for drug delivery systems, injectable materials, and optically trackable adhesives. The findings provide new insights into the multifunctional properties of thermoresponsive PNIPAm-gelatin nanocomposite gels with dynamic imine linkages for biological applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 662-674"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00038f?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117508","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Chibin Zhang, Liang Yao, Mingrui Pu and Cheng Zhou
{"title":"Recent material development and applications of conjugated polyelectrolytes by leveraging electronic and ionic transport properties","authors":"Chibin Zhang, Liang Yao, Mingrui Pu and Cheng Zhou","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00012B","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00012B","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) are a distinct class of organic materials featuring a π-conjugated backbone and ionic functional groups, enabling simultaneous electronic and ionic transport. This dual conductivity, governed by molecular design, makes CPEs highly versatile for a wide range of applications. The interplay between backbone conjugation and side-chain polarity allows fine-tuning of charge transport, significantly influencing their performance in electronic and energy storage devices. This review highlights recent advances in CPE material design, focusing on backbone evolution and side-chain engineering. We further explore key applications of CPEs, including organic photovoltaics, organic electrochemical transistors, and lithium-ion batteries, emphasizing the structural requirements for each field. Their current challenges and future opportunities are discussed, underscoring the critical role played by CPEs in next-generation optoelectronic and energy technologies.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 549-573"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00012b?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117437","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cationic nano-objects produced by polymerization-induced self-assembly using sulfonium-macro chain transfer agents with different counter anions†","authors":"Hirotsugu Miyakawa and Hideharu Mori","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00009B","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00009B","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Sulfonium cations and sulfonium-based polymers have received increased interest as biomedical and ion-conductive materials because of their unique cationic features. However, the feasible construction of cationic nanostructures <em>via</em> polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) remains limited owing to charge repulsion. In this study, we report the efficient synthesis of sulfonium cation-based nano-objects from P(MTEA(S<small><sup>+</sup></small>)[R<small><sup>−</sup></small>])s with different counter anions (R = bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, TFSI; trifluoromethanesulfonate, OTf; and chloride, Cl), which were prepared by reversible addition–fragmentation chain-transfer (RAFT) of 2-(methylthio)ethyl acylate (MTEA) and a subsequent anion exchange reaction. RAFT dispersion copolymerization of styrene (St) and <em>N</em>-phenylmaleimide (PMI) using cationic P(MTEA(S<small><sup>+</sup></small>)[R<small><sup>−</sup></small>]) macro-chain transfer agents (CTAs) afforded various assembled structures (worms, vesicles, and nanotubes) by tuning the chain lengths of the P(MTEA(S<small><sup>+</sup></small>)[R<small><sup>−</sup></small>]) and P(St-<em>alt</em>-PMI) blocks and their composition and polymerization conditions (<em>e.g.</em>, monomer concentration and solvent polarity). Depending on the three cationic macro-CTAs, the PISA of St and PMI enabled the efficient copolymerization and construction of cationic assemblies, including unique nanotubes. This is the first study demonstrating the successful integration of the sulfonium macro-CTA and PISA, enabling the design and manipulation of cationic nano-objects with various morphologies and unique functionalities originating from sulfonium cations.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 651-661"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00009b?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abhishek P. Dhand, Ren H. Bean, Viviane Chiaradia, Alex J. Commisso, Dalia Dranseike, Hayden E. Fowler, Julia M. Fraser, Holden Howard, Takashi Kaneko, Ji-Won Kim, Jason M. Kronenfeld, Keldy S. Mason, Connor J. O'Dea, Fred Pashley-Johnson, Dominique H. Porcincula, Maddison I. Segal, Siwei Yu and Max A. Saccone
{"title":"Advances in vat photopolymerization: early-career researchers shine light on a path forward","authors":"Abhishek P. Dhand, Ren H. Bean, Viviane Chiaradia, Alex J. Commisso, Dalia Dranseike, Hayden E. Fowler, Julia M. Fraser, Holden Howard, Takashi Kaneko, Ji-Won Kim, Jason M. Kronenfeld, Keldy S. Mason, Connor J. O'Dea, Fred Pashley-Johnson, Dominique H. Porcincula, Maddison I. Segal, Siwei Yu and Max A. Saccone","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00010F","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00010F","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Vat photopolymerization (VP) has emerged as a promising additive manufacturing technique to allow rapid light-based fabrication of 3D objects from a liquid resin. Research in the field of vat photopolymerization spans across multiple disciplines from engineering and materials science to applied chemistry and physics. This perspective brings together early-career researchers from various disciplines in academia and national laboratories around the world to summarize the most recent advancements with special emphasis on the research highlighted as part of the Gordon Research Conference (GRC) 2024 meeting on Additive Manufacturing of Soft Materials. We provide an outlook on next-generation polymer processing methods from synthesis of novel materials to multimodality manufacturing and performance engineering. Further, this article combines the ideas of many of these junior researchers to present a vision for the future of the field by highlighting the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 574-591"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00010f?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117500","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Arvin Sain Tanwar, Parameswar Krishnan Iyer and Franck Meyer
{"title":"Dual-modal detection of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) using a single polymer platform: ACQ and IDA approaches†","authors":"Arvin Sain Tanwar, Parameswar Krishnan Iyer and Franck Meyer","doi":"10.1039/D4LP00344F","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D4LP00344F","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a prominent member of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), poses significant environmental and health risks due to its persistence and toxicity. We report a dual-modal sensing strategy employing the water-soluble conjugated polyelectrolyte, poly(3,3′-((1,4-phenylenebis(oxy))bis(propane-3,1-diyl))bis(1-methyl-1<em>H</em>-imidazol-3-ium) bromide) (PPMI), for instant detection of PFOA. PPMI exhibits aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) and indicator displacement assay (IDA) “turn-on” responses towards PFOA in aqueous media. The ACQ mechanism yields a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.21 μM. In contrast, the IDA approach achieves a remarkably lower LOD of 16.1 nM. Notably, PPMI detects PFOA in the presence of potentially interfering ions and distinguishes it from structurally similar PFOA analogues. This dual-modal approach offers a reliable method for PFOA monitoring in environmental water samples.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 4","pages":" 811-819"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d4lp00344f?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144641113","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mousumi R. Bepari, Pravin S. Shinde and Jason E. Bara
{"title":"Depolymerization of PET by common alkanolamines yields tunable monomers to expand the design space of 3D-printable, intrinsically self-healing polyamide-ionenes†","authors":"Mousumi R. Bepari, Pravin S. Shinde and Jason E. Bara","doi":"10.1039/D4LP00372A","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D4LP00372A","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a ubiquitous thermoplastic used in textiles and packaging, is one of the primary contributors to plastic pollution. While PET is also one of the most recycled plastics, it has value as a rich source of chemical building blocks. When PET is depolymerized by amino alcohols (“alkanolamines”) such as monoethanolamine (MEA), terephthalamide-diol molecules are produced. In the presence of thionyl chloride (SOCl<small><sub>2</sub></small>), these diols are amenable to transformation to the corresponding dichloride monomers, which can then be polymerized <em>via</em> condensation methods (<em>i.e.</em>, Menshutkin reaction) with bisimidazole compounds followed by ion-exchange to yield polyamide (PA)-ionenes with tailored structures. The PA-ionenes produced from these methods are intrinsically self-healing and possess thermal and mechanical properties which make them amenable to 3D printing. This study reports on synthetic methods and structure–property relationships in PA-ionenes that arise from the choice of molecular building blocks.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 686-700"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d4lp00372a?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117510","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amrita Chatterjee, Shashank Jha, Sushmit Sen, Keshav Dev, Chayan Das and Pradip K. Maji
{"title":"Hydroxyl-functional acrylic adhesives: leveraging polysilazane chemistry for curing†","authors":"Amrita Chatterjee, Shashank Jha, Sushmit Sen, Keshav Dev, Chayan Das and Pradip K. Maji","doi":"10.1039/D4LP00354C","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D4LP00354C","url":null,"abstract":"<p >Acrylic-based wood adhesives are widely recognized for their durability, UV resistance, and rapid drying properties, traditionally achieved using isocyanate-based curing systems despite their inherent toxicity. In this study, the potential of polysilazane (PSZ) as an alternative cross-linker for functional acrylic polymers was evaluated, focusing on adhesive properties. The crosslinking interactions between the acrylic polymer and PSZ formed a highly stable Si–O reinforced three-dimensional network, as characterized by analytical techniques and further supported by enhanced thermal stability and adhesive performance. The PSZ-cured acrylic system exhibited a glass transition temperature (<em>T</em><small><sub>g</sub></small>) increase to 56 °C from 31 °C of the uncrosslinked copolymer. In the tested range of 10–25 wt% of PSZ, the formulation containing 20 wt% PSZ achieved a 97.9% degree of crosslinking. Compared to traditional diisocyanate-crosslinked systems, better adhesive performance was obtained with maximum tensile shear strength values of 4.4 MPa for wood substrates (substrate failure) and up to 4.0 MPa for aluminum substrates. These findings confirm that PSZ enhances the mechanical properties of acrylic adhesives, offering optimal performance and ease of application and underscoring their practical utility.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 675-685"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d4lp00354c?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117509","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Spencer J. Gilman, Nicolas C. Nicolaidis, Tomas J. Marsh, Paul C. Dastoor and Seth C. Rasmussen
{"title":"Sidechain engineering in poly(2,3-alkylthieno[3,4-b]pyrazine)s via GRIM polymerization: solubility, film formation, and device performance†","authors":"Spencer J. Gilman, Nicolas C. Nicolaidis, Tomas J. Marsh, Paul C. Dastoor and Seth C. Rasmussen","doi":"10.1039/D5LP00023H","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D5LP00023H","url":null,"abstract":"<p >The effects of branched <em>vs.</em> linear alkyl sidechains were investigated in poly(2,3-dialkylthieno[3,4-<em>b</em>]pyrazine)s <em>via</em> GRIM polymerization, focusing on molecular weight, processibility, and device performance. New 2-ethylhexyl derivatives exhibited enhancement in nearly all aspects, with photovoltaic devices exhibiting photoresponse out to 1300 nm and competitive specific detectivity values for NIR photodetectors.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 598-602"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d5lp00023h?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hiromi Shinohara, Hirotsugu Araihara and Hiroyuki Nishide
{"title":"Highly facilitated permeation and enrichment of oxygen from air through a polyvinylimidazole membrane ligated with cobaltporphyrin that kinetically interacts with oxygen†","authors":"Hiromi Shinohara, Hirotsugu Araihara and Hiroyuki Nishide","doi":"10.1039/D4LP00336E","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1039/D4LP00336E","url":null,"abstract":"<p >A dense and tough membrane of cobalt tetraphenylporphyrin (CoTPP) and poly(1-vinylimidazole-<em>co</em>-octyl methacrylate) (OIm) is prepared on a porous support. The oxygen permeability coefficient and oxygen/nitrogen permselectivity reach 10 Barrer and >110, respectively, at a pressure difference between the feed side and permeate side of 2 cmHg. The membrane with a diameter of 10 cm enriches oxygen from dried air to an oxygen concentration >60% through a one-shot permeation process. The reversible but kinetically very active interaction between oxygen molecules and the CoTPP fixed in the OIm membrane is analyzed while the membrane is under high oxygen pressure or low temperature using spectroscopy techniques including laser-flash photolysis: <em>i.e.</em> 920 cmHg for the half of the CoTPP interacted with oxygen and extremely rapid oxygen-releasing rate constant of approximately 10<small><sup>6</sup></small> s<small><sup>−1</sup></small>, when extrapolated at room temperature. The enhanced oxygen diffusivity is discussed for the oxygen permeation facilitated through the membrane.</p>","PeriodicalId":101139,"journal":{"name":"RSC Applied Polymers","volume":" 3","pages":" 643-650"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/lp/d4lp00336e?page=search","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144117506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}