Berlin 2012 – scientific programme

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CPP: Fachverband Chemische Physik und Polymerphysik

CPP 27: Poster: (Hydrogels) and Elastomers

CPP 27.4: Poster

Wednesday, March 28, 2012, 11:00–13:00, Poster A

Thermoresponsive microgels prepared using a semi-batch emulsion polymerization — •Sarah T. Turner and Regine von Klitzing — Stranski Laboratory, Dept. of Chemistry, TU Berlin, Germany

The ability to reversibly switch between a collapsed and expanded state in response to an external stimulus, such as temperature or pH-value, makes microgels attractive for applications such as sensoric and drug delivery systems. Thermoresponsive microgels prepared using a batch emulsion polymerization are known to contain inhomogeneities in the crosslinking density distribution due to the variation in the monomer and crosslinker reactivities [1]. A semi-batch emulsion polymerization is a versatile alternative to a batch polymerization for the preparation of microgels that provides a more homogeneous internal crosslinking distribution, compared to the batch emulsion polymerization, when the feed rate is set to the consumption rate of the various monomer components [2]. Here, we present the results of kinetic and morphological studies on microgels prepared by batch and semi-batch methods. Moreover, the preparation and response of hybrid microgels containing metallic nanoparticles implementing the semi-batch method are studied.

[1] X. Wu et al. Coll. Polym. Sci. 272, 467 (1994). [2] R. Acciaro et al. Langmuir 27, 7917 (2011).