Block copolymer application

Due to the rather easy accessibility of novel functional polymer materials by click reactions, their potential scope of applications has significantly broadened in the last years. Through the preparation of functional thin polymer films, biohybrids, or self-assembly structures from end group or side chain functionalized polymers and functional block copolymers, applications, for example, as adhesives or additives, but especially also in optoelectronics, biomedicine, drug delivery, biochips, and micro- and nanoelectronics become accessible. 

S. Lecommandoux, M. Lazzari, G. Liu, An Introduction to Block Copolymer Applications State-of-the-Art and Future Developments. Block Copolymers in Nanoscience, Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH Co. KGaA, 2008, pp. 1-7. 

Most recent developments in block copolymer applications make use of the fact that the phase-separated microstructures are of nanometer length scales, periodic in nature, and in many cases porous if one of the phases is removed. The use of block copolymers is especially advantageous if these length scales cannot be readily accessed via other means. The following three examples will illustrate the opportunities and challenges in using block copolymers. 

Annis B K, Noid D W, Sumpter B G, Reffner J R and Wunderlich B 1992 Application of atomic force microscopy (AFM) to a block copolymer and an extended chain polyethylene Makromol. Chem., Rapid. Commun. 13 169 Annis B K, Schwark D W, Reffner J R, Thomas E L and Wunderlich B 1992 Determination of surface morphology of diblock copolymers of styrene and butadiene by atomic force microscopy Makromol. Chem. 193 2589... 

Fraaije, J.G.E.M., Van Vlimmeren, B.A.C., Maurits, N.M., Postma, M., Evers, O.A., Hoffmann, C., Altevogt, P., Goldbeck-Wood, G. The dynamic mean-field density functional method and its application to the mesoscopic dynamics of quenched block copolymer melts. J. Chem. Phys. 106 (1997) 4260-4269. 

Tough transparent sheet may be produced by blending standard polystyrene with block copolymer in an extruder in the ratios 80 20 to 20 80, depending on the application of the products subsequently thermoformed from the sheet. For example, sheet for thermoforming an egg tray will not require the same level of impact strength as that required for jam jars. 

The demands on the PSA performance for these types of applications can be very high, especially in the areas of creep, shear resistance and long-term durability. For these reasons, crosslinked acrylics and stabilized block copolymer adhesives have become the main PSA material choices. 

Most types of PSAs have found some application in the label industry. Block copolymer-based adhesives are perhaps the most popular because of their high adhesion to a variety of surfaces, their low cost, their good performance over a range of temperatures and peel rates, and their ease of processing. For applications where high temperature performance is required, block copolymers have been formulated with high T end block associating resins or polymers. 

Thermoplastic block copolymers were used for pressure-sensitive and hot-melt rubber adhesives as from the middle sixties. These adhesives found application in packaging, disposable diapers, labels and tapes, among other industrial markets. The formulation of these adhesives generally includes an elastomer (generally containing styrene endblocks and either isoprene, butadiene or ethylene-butylene midblocks) and a tackifier (mainly a rosin derivative or hydrocarbon resin). 

Block copolymers can contain crystalline or amorphous hard blocks. Examples of crystalline block copolymers are polyurethanes (e.g. B.F. Goodrich s Estane line), polyether esters (e.g. Dupont s Hytrel polymers), polyether amides (e.g. Atofina s Pebax grades). Polyurethanes have enjoyed limited utility due to their relatively low thermal stability use temperatures must be kept below 275°F, due to the reversibility of the urethane linkage. Recently, polyurethanes with stability at 350°F for nearly 100 h have been claimed [2]. Polyether esters and polyether amides have been explored for PSA applications where their heat and plasticizer resistance is a benefit [3]. However, the high price of these materials and their multiblock architecture have limited their use. All of these crystalline block copolymers consist of multiblocks with relatively short, amorphous, polyether or polyester mid-blocks. Consequently they can not be diluted as extensively with tackifiers and diluents as styrenic triblock copolymers. Thereby it is more difficult to obtain strong, yet soft adhesives — the primary goals of adding rubber to hot melts. 

The adhesives employed for in-line adhesive application are generally of two types (1) flexible, but non-pressure-sensitive adhesives based on blends of saturated stryenic block copolymers and wax and (2) pressure sensitives based... 

It is well known that block copolymers and graft copolymers composed of incompatible sequences form the self-assemblies (the microphase separations). These morphologies of the microphase separation are governed by Molau s law [1] in the solid state. Nowadays, not only the three basic morphologies but also novel morphologies, such as ordered bicontinuous double diamond structure, are reported [2-6]. The applications of the microphase separation are also investigated [7-12]. As one of the applications of the microphase separation of AB diblock copolymers, it is possible to synthesize coreshell type polymer microspheres upon crosslinking the spherical microdomains [13-16]. 

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