Evolution of structural dimensions in mesoporous template precursor from hexagonal lyotropic liquid crystalsShow others and affiliations
2020 (English)In: Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter, ISSN 0953-8984, E-ISSN 1361-648X, Vol. 32, no 7, article id 075101Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Producing nanopores from hexagonal lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs) templates requires not only retaining phase morphology of the templates but also precisely controlling structural dimensions of unit cells. In this study, SAXS and H-2 NMR are used to investigate dimensional evolutions of ternary systems consisting of polymerizable species, (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) and/or 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), in a LLCs template of hexagonally packed cylinders formed from dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide (DTAB) and water. With the addition of those polymerizable species, the system rearranges into a new hexagonal system with a smaller aggregation number, smaller pores and a thicker pore wall thickness. The hexagonal system will coexist with an aqueous-rich phase containing isotropically distributed DTAB if sufficient PEGDA is applied but the single hexagonal system could be restored by partially replacing the PEGDA with HEMA. The mobility of DTAB molecules within the aggregates varies depending on monomer compositions. The changes in structural dimensions of the unit cells and phase behaviors after adding polymerizable monomers allow dimensional control of mesochannels and potentially enable the control of selectivity and robustness of polymerized nanomaterials via molecular design.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Institute of Physics (IOP), 2020. Vol. 32, no 7, article id 075101
National Category
Physical Chemistry
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-13805DOI: 10.1088/1361-648X/ab49a8ISI: 000499938900001PubMedID: 31574494Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85075814336OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mau-13805DiVA, id: diva2:1415339
2020-03-182020-03-182024-06-18Bibliographically approved