Frontiers in Soft Matter最新文献

{"title":"Sustainable antibiofilm self-assembled colloidal systems","authors":"D. Moran, Clara Saweres-Argüelles, Verdiana Marchianò, Shayesteh Bazsefidpar, E. Serrano-Pertierra, M. Matos, G. Gutiérrez, M. Blanco-López","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1041881","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1041881","url":null,"abstract":"Biofilms find a favorable environment in industrial processes such as food, cosmetic, or medical prosthesis and devices, being responsible of approximately 80% of human bacterial infections. Prevention and/or eradication of microorganism’ films is a worldwide need. There is an increasing interest on the finding and use of novel antimicrobial compounds without side effects. An additional challenge is to fight the antimicrobial resistance that some bacteria and microorganisms develop with traditional antibiotics. Also, in recent years, sustainability and natural source of the antibiofilm chemical principles are also a priority demand. Colloidal systems such as vesicles, particle suspensions, or emulsions are becoming increasingly useful tools for biocompound delivery due to their ability to protect the compound encapsulated against external factors and their possibility to be used as target delivery systems. During the last decade, these types of systems have been widely used for the encapsulation of traditional and novel compounds with antimicrobial properties. The present study summarizes different types of natural compounds tested against several types of bacteria and their feasibility to be encapsulated in different types of colloidal systems.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"93 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"122846914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Coacervation of biopolymers on muscovite surface","authors":"Jiaxin Chen, Zhijun Liu, Yanzhang Li, Qingwen Bai, Yan Li, Dehai Liang","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1054658","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1054658","url":null,"abstract":"The first life was believed to emerge in the early Earth via a process involving synthesis of organic compounds and formation of protocells. However, it is still a puzzle how the protocell with hierarchal structure and desirable functions was spontaneously generated in the non-living environment composed of mainly water and minerals. In this work, using muscovite as an example of minerals, we systemically studied the coacervation of poly ( l -lysine) (PLL), quaternized dextran (Q-dextran), and single-stranded oligonucleotide (ss-oligo) on muscovite surface at varying mixing orders. Only when Q-dextran firstly interacts with muscovite surface to form a coating layer, followed by the addition of ss-oligo and PLL, the formed coacervates exhibit distinct and versatile morphologies, including spherical PLL/ss-oligo droplets on the surface, floating PLL/ss-oligo droplets above the Q-dextran/ss-oligo blanket, and PLL/ss-oligo islands surrounded by the Q-dextran/ss-oligo sea. The kinetic pathways to the resulting morphologies are specific in each case. There results suggest that polysaccharide was probably the first biopolymer accumulated on the mineral surface in early Earth. The sugar coating provided a “nest” for protein/peptide and DNA/RNA to from sub-compartments and to further develop advanced functions.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121362848","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Solvent-induced crystallization and phase-transition phenomena in syndiotactic polystyrene and its relatives","authors":"Hai Wang, Y. Men, K. Tashiro","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1041872","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1041872","url":null,"abstract":"The studies of time-dependent structural changes in the solvent-induced crystallization and phase transition phenomena have been reviewed by focusing mainly on syndiotactic polystyrene (SPS) and its relatives having the functional groups on the phenyl rings. The time-resolved measurement of X-ray diffraction and vibrational spectra has revealed the structural evolution process in the solvent-induced crystallization of SPS, which depends on the type (polarity, bulkiness, etc.) of the solvent molecules. The heating of the SPS-solvent complexes causes the complicated phase transitions from the δ form (complex) to the γ form and to the α (or β) form. The introduction of such a polar functional group as OCH3 or halogen units on the phenyl rings enhances the interactions between the SPS and the solvent, the strength of which depends on the substitution position of the OCH3 units on the phenyl ring. For example, the ortho- or para-substitution dissolves the sample quite easily at room temperature, while the meta-substitution makes it possible to create the solvent complexes. The discussion has been made for the structural relation before and after the formation of the solvent-complexes.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"45 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"130350501","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Isothermal crystallization kinetics in bulk of olefin-based multiblock copolymers","authors":"G. Urciuoli, Odda Ruiz de Ballesteros, Giuseppe Femina, F. Auriemma","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1021006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1021006","url":null,"abstract":"Isothermal crystallization kinetics of ethylene/1-octene (C2/C8) multiblock copolymers synthesized by chain shuttling technology is investigated. The samples are a reactor blend of segmented chains characterized by alternating crystalline and amorphous blocks with C8 content of 0.5 and 20 mol%, respectively, and statistical distribution of block number/chain and block length. The analysis is carried out after complete removal of a fraction (5–12 wt%), namely consisting of C8-rich blocks, through Kumagawa extraction with boiling diethyl ether. The resultant diethyl ether-insoluble fractions have similar average content of C8 units (≈13–14 mol%) and of crystalline blocks (≈23–27 wt%) but different molecular mass (the number average molecular mass M n is ≈ 60–70 kDa for the samples 1,2 and ≈38 and ≈21 kDa for the samples 3 and 4, respectively). An additional sample with M n ≈ 93 kDa, but a greater average content of C8 units (≈15 mol%) and a smaller content of crystalline blocks (15 wt%) is also analyzed. The crystallization half time of the samples increases with increase of M n and, for each sample, its logarithm increases linearly with a decrease of the undercooling by a factor of -0.155/°C, for the samples 1–4 and −0.031/°C, for the sample 5. Using the classic kinetic crystallization model by Lauritzen and Hoffman, values of energy barrier constant due to contributions from primary nucleation K N and crystal growth K G are extracted. The K N contribution is esteemed to amount to ≈34% of the total barrier assuming regime II for the sample 5 and regime III (or I) for the samples 1–4, to ≈34% for the sample 5 and 67% for the samples 1–4, assuming regime II for all the samples. In all the cases, regardless of the assumed regimes, the K N values of the sample 5 are lower than those of the samples 1–4. As a final remark, the implications of crystallization kinetics on the solid-state morphology are also discussed, considering that transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images present a partially mesophase separated morphology for the samples 1,2, and 5 and a classic lamellar morphology for the samples 3 and 4.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126687404","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Liquid crystal-polymer composites switchable windows for radiant energy flow and privacy control","authors":"Suman Halder, Yunho Shin, Ziyuan Zhou, Xinfang Zhang, Lang Hu, Deng-Ke Yang","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1021077","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1021077","url":null,"abstract":"Global warming is becoming a more and more severe crisis for humans. One way to resolve the concern is to reduce energy consumption. Smart switchable windows for office and residential buildings and vehicles can help reduce energy consumption. An ideal smart window should be able to control radiant energy flow and privacy. We investigated the capability of switchable windows based on liquid crystal/polymer composites, such as polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC), polymer stabilized liquid crystal (PSLC), and polymer stabilized cholesteric texture (PSCT), to control the privacy and radiant energy flow. Through a systematic study, we identified methods to improve their capabilities. We demonstrated that PDLC and PSCT windows of sufficient thick film thickness can control both privacy and energy flow.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"1 4","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"114020481","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Simulation of a cholesteric blue phase cell with large but finite thickness","authors":"J. Fukuda","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1011618","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1011618","url":null,"abstract":"We investigate the structure of a cholesteric blue phase (BP) liquid crystal cell of finite thickness under an electric field normal to the planar surfaces confining the liquid crystal. We carry out large scale simulations to consider cases in which the thickness of the BP liquid crystal is approximately 40 times the BP lattice constant (typical thickness in experiments), larger than that of previous simulation studies. Our calculations clearly demonstrate that the number of periodic structures along the thickness direction (thickness divided by the lattice constant) is discretized by the presence of confining surfaces. The stability of the so-called BP X structure over the BP I under the electric field, as well as the electrostriction, is confirmed. The metastability of the BP X structure after the cessation of the electric field, demonstrated in a recent experiment [Nat. Mater. 19, 94 (2020)] is also shown. We also perform calculations for the reflection spectra of the BP structures, and clearly observe the shift of the reflection peak due to electrostriction. Our study demonstrates the role of finite thickness on the behavior of a BP cell.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124479109","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Grand challenges in polymers","authors":"K. Saalwächter","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1037349","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1037349","url":null,"abstract":"In recent years, we have witnessed a considerable diversification in the field of polymer science. On the side of fundamental research in polymer chemistry, the “hot topics” of the last decade include smart and responsive, possibly self-healing polymers, sequence-controlled polymers for e.g., information storage, and the increasingly large cut-set with the life sciences, such as peptide/protein mimetics. In the physics domain, the properties of self-organized nanostructured polymers and nanocomposites, semiconducting polymers, polymers at interfaces, and a better understanding of branched or crosslinked topologies may be mentioned. All these exciting developments have only partially addressed the need for innovations in the fields of commodity and engineering plastics as well as of thermosets and rubbers, which are naturally developed in the more applied disciplines and of course in industrial research. Improved polymeric materials are pivotal for cornerstone technologies such as electric mobility or additive manufacturing, where inexpensive high-performance construction materials, possibly as lightweight composites, have never been at a higher demand. This perspective elaborates on a few of the above-mentioned topics from a very personal standpoint, circling around the latter challenge, which brings us to the possibly most pressing question in current polymer science: How can we as scientists contribute to moving away from often single-use throwaway products and downcycling at best to a fully sustainable, cyclic plastics economy? In the end, I will give a perspective on important contributions that polymer physics and theory may be able to provide, in particular for the foundations of the life sciences.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"57 4","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"113941068","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Morphology and rheology of composites of poly(styrene-co-2-vinyl pyridine) copolymers and phosphotungstic acid","authors":"Qingbin He, Yanjie Zhang, Zhijie Zhang, H. Qian, Quan Chen","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.980210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.980210","url":null,"abstract":"Morphological and rheological properties are examined for poly(styrene-co-2-vinyl pyridine) (P(S-co-2VP)) copolymers upon introducing phosphotungstic acid, one kind of polyoxometalates (POMs). The phosphotungstic acid protonates the 2VP monomers, and the deprotonated phosphotungstic acid effectively crosslinks the protonated 2VP monomers, inducing phase segregation into the S-rich and 2VP-rich domains. Linear viscoelasticity (LVE) of the composite samples strongly relies on the continuity of the 2VP-rich domains and can be classified into the following three types. (1) For 2VP-rich sphere domains in the S-rich matrix, LVE is akin to the conventional elastomer characterized by a wide rubbery regime before the terminal relaxation. (2) For bicontinuous morphology, where both the 2VP-rich and S-rich domains are continuous, two glassy processes manifest in LVE, and the chain relaxation is controlled by the continuous ion dissociation in the less mobilized 2VP-rich domain. (3) When the 2VP-rich domain is the only continuous phase, only the glassy modulus of the 2VP-rich domain manifests in LVE, and the chain relaxation is activated by the continuous ionic dissociations in the matrix. Surprisingly, the relaxation time obtained for all three abovementioned morphologies can be reduced to a universal behavior once the average glass transition temperature of the 2VP-rich region and the number of effective stickers per chain have been properly normalized, indicating that these two parameters control the chain-dimensional dynamics.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"10 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133180266","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Recent applications of the Successive Self-nucleation and Annealing thermal fractionation technique","authors":"R. A. Pérez-Camargo, D. Cavallo, A. Müller","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.1003500","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.1003500","url":null,"abstract":"Successive Self-nucleation and Annealing (SSA) is a thermal fractionation technique that is performed by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The combination of non-isothermal and isothermal steps applied during SSA achieves efficient molecular segregation during polymer crystallization. Such molecular segregation magnifies the effect of defects in polymer chain crystallization, thereby providing information on chain structure. The technique was created and implemented by Müller and co-workers in 1997, becoming a powerful resource for studying ethylene/α-olefin copolymers. The different variables to design the SSA protocol: fractionation window, fractionation time, scanning rate, sample mass, and the first self-nucleation temperature to be applied (T s, ideal ), have been previously reviewed, together with the different applications of SSA. SSA versatility, simplicity (when properly applied), and short times to produce results have allowed its use to study novel and more complex polymeric systems. This review article explores the most recent applications of SSA of the past decade. First, the principles of the technique are briefly explained, covering all the relevant variables. Next, we have selected different cases that show how SSA is employed in various novel fields, such as studying intermolecular interactions and topological effects in homopolymers; supernucleation and antinucleation effects in nanocomposites, including the pre-freezing phenomenon; crystallization modes in random copolymers; solid-solid transitions; miscibility, co-crystallization and composition in blends; evaluation of polymer synthesis variables; and the novel information that could be gained by using fast scanning chip-based calorimetry. Finally, we offer a perspective on SSA, a technique that has become a powerful method for studying the distribution of defects affecting crystallization in semi-crystalline polymers.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"2004 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125616380","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring the principles of self-healing polymers based on halogen bond interactions","authors":"Robin Kampes, J. Meurer, Julian Hniopek, Carolin Bernt, S. Zechel, M. Schmitt, J. Popp, M. Hager, U. Schubert","doi":"10.3389/frsfm.2022.973821","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/frsfm.2022.973821","url":null,"abstract":"In this study, novel self-healing polymers based on halogen bonds as reversible supramolecular crosslinking moieties are presented. The reversible crosslinking is facilitated by a polymer-bound bidentate halogen bond donor entity in combination with small molecule acceptor suberic acid. The binding strength of the crosslinking can be tuned via deprotonation of the diacid crosslinker. The material characteristics are investigated with several methods such as NMR and Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry as well as rheology. The tactile profile measurements have been utilized to monitor the scratch healing ability of the polymer networks revealing excellent healing efficiencies up to 99% within 2 h at a temperature of 100°C. Thus, the self-healing ability of halogen bond polymers could be quantified for the first time.","PeriodicalId":409762,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Soft Matter","volume":"89 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132257850","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}