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Article
Micellization of a Di-Block Copolymer in Ethylene Glycol and Its Utilization for Suspension of Carbonaceous Nanostructures
Journal of Applied Polymer Science
  • Neta Cohen
  • Efrat Ziv
  • Gleb Vasilyev
  • Anthony J. Convertine, Missouri University of Science and Technology
  • Yael Levi-Kalisman
  • Rachel Yerushalmi-Rozen
Abstract

Suspensions of carbonaceous nanoparticles (NPs) in ethylene glycol (EG) can be used as colloidal inks for additive manufacturing and nano-fluids for heat-transfer applications. While micellar solutions of surfactants are often used for suspension of the NPs in water, micellization of surfactants in EG is suppressed as compared to aqueous solutions and a well-defined critical micellization concentration (CMC) is often not observed. Unlike the surfactants, a di-block copolymer comprising a poly(ethylene glycol) monomethylether methacrylate (PEGMA) segment, 2-(diethylaminoethyl) methacrylate (DEAEMA) and butyl methacrylate (BMA), poly(O950)-b-(DEAEMA-co-BMA) was found to assemble into spherical micelles in EG. Surface tension measurements show a well-defined CMC that depends on the volume fraction of EG. Cryogenic transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering show the presence of spherical micelles with a diameter that reduces with the volume fraction of EG. The micellar solutions were further used for suspending carbonaceous NPs of different geometry and characteristic dimensions: C60 fullerenes, multi-walled carbon nanotubes, and nanodiamonds. The flow behavior of the suspensions exhibits a relatively low viscosity and mostly Newtonian behavior due to strong interaction between the NPs and the micelles. These suspensions may be used as colloidal inks for two-dimensional and three-dimensional printing.

Department(s)
Materials Science and Engineering
Comments
The support of the Israel Science Foundation is acknowledged.
Keywords and Phrases
  • 3D printers,
  • Block copolymers,
  • Carbon nanotubes,
  • Ethylene,
  • Ethylene glycol,
  • Fullerenes,
  • Heat transfer,
  • High resolution transmission electron microscopy,
  • Light scattering,
  • Micelles,
  • Micellization,
  • Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCN),
  • Nanodiamonds,
  • Polyethylene glycols,
  • Polyols,
  • Self assembly,
  • Solutions,
  • Surface active agents,
  • Transmission electron microscopy,
  • Viscosity,
  • Volume fraction,
  • Yarn, Butyl methacrylates,
  • Carbonaceous nanoparticles,
  • Critical micellization concentration,
  • Cryogenic transmission electron microscopy,
  • Ethylene glycol solutions,
  • Heat transfer applications,
  • Polymeric micelle,
  • Surface tension measurements, Suspensions (fluids)
Document Type
Article - Journal
Document Version
Citation
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2018 John Wiley & Sons Inc., All rights reserved.
Publication Date
7-1-2018
Publication Date
01 Jul 2018
Citation Information
Neta Cohen, Efrat Ziv, Gleb Vasilyev, Anthony J. Convertine, et al.. "Micellization of a Di-Block Copolymer in Ethylene Glycol and Its Utilization for Suspension of Carbonaceous Nanostructures" Journal of Applied Polymer Science Vol. 135 Iss. 28 (2018) ISSN: 0021-8995
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/anthony-convertine/29/