Utilizing Metallosupramolecular Polymers as Smart Materials

Download or read book Utilizing Metallosupramolecular Polymers as Smart Materials written by Justin Richard Kumpfer and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dissertation focuses on the preparation and properties of a number of metallosupramolecular polymers, which combine the processability and mechanical properties of polymers with the functionality of metals. Ditopic 2,6-bis(N-methylbenzimidazol-2ʹ-yl)pyridine (Mebip) ligand end-capped metallosupramolecular polymers coordinated with Zn2+ and Eu3+ metal-ions and their resulting stimuli-responsive properties were initially investigated. These polymers were found to exhibit thermo- and chemo-responsive properties directly related to the Eu3+ content. Structure-property relationships were investigated using detailed rheological and morphological studies which revealed that the nature of the polymer core strongly influences the mechanical properties and degree of phase separation of the metal-ligand complexes. This work was expanded upon using a crosslinkable polymer core to form metallosupramolecular polymer films which show shape-memory properties. The shape-memory behavior was able to be triggered using temperature, UV light, or solvents and the shape fixing was tailorable using different metal-ions and counterions. Continued investigations into the use of different metal-ions yielded mechanically stable vapochromic materials by blending small-molecule Mebip:Pt2+ complexes into a series of polymethacrylates. The use of a polymer matrix revealed that the films also displayed piezochromic properties. Pt2+ was then used to form metallosupramolecular polymers with the ditopic macromonomers previously studied to give films which assemble via Pt {u2013} Pt interactions. Thin films of the Pt2+- containing polymers were utilized as templates in the formation of Pt nanoparticles with