Modelling and Simulations in Polymer Surface Chemistry

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Networks".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 February 2022) | Viewed by 5666

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, FEPS, University of Surrey, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK
Interests: DFT; ab initio molecular dynamics; biopolymers; macrocycles; supramolecular self-assembly; 2D networks; surface chemistry; catalysis; quantum biology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, FEPS, University of Surrey, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK
Interests: polymer modelling; QSPR; molecular dynamics; molecular mechanics; composites; structural resins; benzoxazines; simulation of charring of polymers; reactive molecular dynamics; molecular orbitals; DFT
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on theoretical models and computational studies of polymers’ surfaces and interfaces. The surfaces of polymers and polymer composites are of critical importance for numerous technological applications: sensors, electrochemistry, coating, energy and biological applications, to name a few. It is an intrinsically multidisciplinary area of polymer science where chemical and material syntheses are in close contact with nanotechnology, theoretical chemistry and physics.

Papers are sought that present original studies in this area or review topics of relevance to this field, focusing on modelling, theoretical and computational work, with or without supporting experimental results.

The scope of this Special Issue is wide and we are looking forward to receive contributions on simulations of characterization techniques or models of functionalization of polymers’ surfaces, as well as theoretical approaches that suggest the novel application of polymers’ surfaces in fields including electrochemistry, catalysis, coating and corrosion protection, drugs delivery, sensing and photochemistry. Simulations of self-healing polymers and polymers’ degradation are also relevant when they specifically address the role of interfaces and surfaces in these processes.

Dr. Marco Sacchi
Dr. Brendan Howlin
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • modelling
  • simulations
  • molecular dynamics
  • surface chemistry
  • surface science
  • polymer surface
  • polymers
  • polymers composites
  • surface analysis
  • surface characterization
  • nanocarbons
  • drug delivery
  • biological polymers
  • 2D polymers
  • self-assembly
  • overlayers
  • coating
  • interfaces
  • sensors
  • adsorption
  • catalysis
  • surface activation
  • surface treatment
  • surface structure
  • biomedical polymers
  • surface diffusion

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 4221 KiB  
Article
Effective Enhancement of Water Absorbency of Itaconic Acid Based-Superabsorbent Polymer via Tunable Surface—Crosslinking
by Yong-Rok Kwon, Jung-Soo Kim and Dong-Hyun Kim
Polymers 2021, 13(16), 2782; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13162782 - 19 Aug 2021
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2847
Abstract
A superabsorbent polymer (SAP) was synthesized by copolymerizing itaconic acid and vinyl sulfonic acid. The typically low absorbency of itaconic acid-based SAPs under mechanical loads was improved by introducing surface crosslinking. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize the [...] Read more.
A superabsorbent polymer (SAP) was synthesized by copolymerizing itaconic acid and vinyl sulfonic acid. The typically low absorbency of itaconic acid-based SAPs under mechanical loads was improved by introducing surface crosslinking. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize the synthesis and surface-crosslinking reactions in the SAP. Various conditions for surface-crosslinking reactions, such as the surface-crosslinking solution, content of surface-crosslinking agent, and reaction temperature, were explored and correlated with the gel strength and absorption characteristics of the resulting SAP particles. The distilled water content in the surface-crosslinking solution strongly influenced the absorption capacity of the SAP, but this sensitivity decreased when acetone was used as a co-solvent. Itaconic acid-based SAP that was crosslinked under optimal conditions exhibited centrifuge retention capacity and absorbency under a load of 31.1 and 20.2, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modelling and Simulations in Polymer Surface Chemistry)
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16 pages, 8298 KiB  
Article
Linear/Ladder-Like Polysiloxane Block Copolymers with Methyl-, Trifluoropropyl- and Phenyl- Siloxane Units for Surface Modification
by Stepan A. Ostanin, Alexei V. Kalinin, Yurij Yu. Bratsyhin, Natalia N. Saprykina and Vjacheslav V. Zuev
Polymers 2021, 13(13), 2063; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13132063 - 23 Jun 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2127
Abstract
Multiblock copolymers containing linear polydimethylsiloxane or polymethyltrifluoropropylsiloxane and ladder-like polyphenylsiloxane were synthesized in a one-step pathway. The functional homopolymer blocks and final multiblock copolymers were characterized using solution and solid-state multinuclear 1H, 13C, 19F, and 29Si NMR spectroscopy. It [...] Read more.
Multiblock copolymers containing linear polydimethylsiloxane or polymethyltrifluoropropylsiloxane and ladder-like polyphenylsiloxane were synthesized in a one-step pathway. The functional homopolymer blocks and final multiblock copolymers were characterized using solution and solid-state multinuclear 1H, 13C, 19F, and 29Si NMR spectroscopy. It was shown that the ladder-like block contains silanol units, which influence the adhesion properties of multiblock copolymers and morphology of their casted films. The adhesion to metals and mechanical properties of multiblock copolymers were tested. The SEM study of casted films of multiblock copolymers shows the variety of formed morphologies, including long-strip-like or globular. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modelling and Simulations in Polymer Surface Chemistry)
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