Linn Carlsson

Modification of cellulose model surfaces by cationic polymer latexes prepared by RAFT-mediated surfactant-free emulsion polymerization

This paper presents the successful surface modification of a model cellulose substrate by the preparation and subsequent physical adsorption of cationic polymer latexes. The first part of the work introduces novel charged polymer nanoparticles constituted of amphiphilic block copolymers based on cationic poly(N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate-co-methacrylic acid) (P(DMAEMA-co-MAA)) as the hydrophilic segment, and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as the hydrophobic segment. First, RAFT polymerization of N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) in water was performed at pH 7, below its pKa. The simultaneous hydrolysis of DMAEMA led to the formation of a statistical copolymer incorporating mainly protonated DMAEMA units and some deprotonated methacrylic acid units at pH 7. The following step was the RAFT-mediated surfactant-free emulsion polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) using P(DMAEMA-co-MAA) as a hydrophilic macromolecular RAFT agent. During the synthesis, the formed amphiphilic block copolymers self-assembled into cationic latex nanoparticles by polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA). The nanoparticles were found to increase in size with increasing molar mass of the hydrophobic block. The cationic latexes were subsequently adsorbed to cellulose model surfaces in a quartz crystal microbalance equipment with dissipation (QCM-D). The adsorbed amount, in mg m−2, increased with increasing size of the nanoparticles. This approach allows for physical surface modification of cellulose, utilizing a water suspension of particles for which both the surface chemistry and the surface structure can be altered in a well-defined way.

Surface-initiated ring-opening polymerization from cellulose model surfaces monitored by a Quartz Crystal Microbalance

Polymer surface-grafting is an excellent method to modify the properties of a surface. However, surface-initiated polymerization is still relatively poorly understood due to the lack of appropriate characterization methods and tools to monitor the polymerizations. Herein, we report the in situ, surface-initiated ring-opening polymerization (SI-ROP) investigated in real time by the Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) technique. The polymerization was performed from a cellulose model surface and the polymerization was initiated directly from the available hydroxyl groups on the cellulose. The cyclic monomer e-caprolactone and an organic catalyst, 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD), were used, and the reaction was performed in bulk at room temperature. Since a free polymer was formed in bulk in parallel to the grafting from the surface, the reaction was performed in three cycles with rinsing steps in between to measure only the effect of the surface grafting. The change in frequency showed that the grafted amount of polymer increased after each cycle indicating that most of the chain ends remained active. After polymer grafting, the cellulose model surface showed a more hydrophobic character, and the surface roughness of the cellulose model surface was reduced. This study clearly shows that QCM is a viable method to monitor SI-ROP in situ from cellulose surfaces. We believe this is an important step towards a deeper understanding of how to tailor the interface between polymer-modified cellulose and a polymer matrix in biocomposites.