Abstract
There are many studies on the self-assembly of triblock poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide)-poly(ethylene oxide) copolymers in aqueous solution. These polymers display a rich phase diagram as a function of block length, concentration, temperature, and additives. Here, we present a small-angle neutron scattering study of the impact of two water-miscible ionic liquids, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C4C1mim][Cl]) and 1-butyl-3-methylpyrrolidinium chloride ([C4C1pyrr][Cl]), on the temperature-dependent self-assembly of (EO)6-(PO)34-(EO)6, also known as L62 Pluronic, in aqueous solution. Both ionic liquids depress the temperatures of the various structural transitions that take place, but ([C4C1pyrr][Cl]) has a stronger effect. The structures that the triblock copolymer self-assembles into do not dramatically change nor do they significantly change the series of structures that the system transitions through as a function of temperature relative to the various transition temperatures.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 19474-19483 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | ACS Omega |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 23 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jun 14 2022 |
Funding
This manuscript has been authored by UT-Battelle, LLC, under Contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The U.S. government retains and the publisher, by accepting the article for publication, acknowledges that the U.S. government retains a nonexclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, worldwide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this manuscript, or allow others to do so, for the U.S. government purposes. DOE will provide public access to these results of federally sponsored research in accordance with the DOE Public Access Plan (http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan).
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| U.S. Department of Energy | |
| U.S. Department of Energy |