Thermal annealing or curing

The response to thermal annealing depended on the dry state morphology of the 

The thermal annealing of the MIP was accompanied by a significant reduction in the swelling and an increase in the apparent dry density of the material. This results in a higher density of the enantioselective binding sites, although they may be less accessible than prior to the thermal treatment. The nitrogen sorption data showed 

A curing step (120°C) applied to the L-PA imprinted polymers led to an apparent increase in sample load capacity [7]. As seen in Table 5.9 this treatment does not result in any significant differences in the dry state porosity and swelling of the material. However, it is likely that the number of unreacted double bonds is lower in these materials in view of the higher conversions observed in thermally versus photochemically polymerised materials (see Chapter 2). 

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