Issue 11, 2003
From the journal:

Journal of Materials Chemistry

The preparation of novel nano-structured polymer blends of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene with polymethacrylates using supercritical carbon dioxide†

Andrew J. Busby,a   Jianxin Zhang,b   Andrew Naylor,a   Clive J. Roberts,b   Martyn C. Davies,b   Saul J. B. Tendlerb  and  Steven M. Howdle*a  

* Corresponding authors

a School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, UK
E-mail: steve.howdle@nottingham.ac.uk
Fax: +44 (0)115 9513058
Tel: +44 (0)115 9513486

b School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, UK
E-mail: clive.roberts@nottingham.ac.uk
Fax: +44 (0)115 9515110
Tel: +44 (0)115 9515048

Abstract

Supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) was employed to facilitate the efficient impregnation and in situ polymerisation of a range of methacrylate monomers within an ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene matrix. Four alkyl functionalised methacrylate polymers have been investigated, namely PMMA, PEMA, PPMA and PBMA. This has allowed us to assess the effect of changing the side chain length on the loading of the methacrylate phase and the morphology of the polymer blends produced. The blends produced do not exhibit the usual gross phase separation that results if the polymers are blended by conventional means. A combination of tapping mode atomic force microscopy, thermal characterisation and spectroscopic analysis has shown that the methacrylates reside in nanometre scale phase separated domains within the polyethylene. Furthermore, atomic force microscopy shows the dramatic effect on the crystallite morphology of blending the amorphous methacrylate component into the semi-crystalline polyethylene. The novel blended materials produced by this technique are not formed in the absence of scCO2 and are impossible to fabricate by conventional methodologies.

Graphical abstract: The preparation of novel nano-structured polymer blends of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene with polymethacrylates using supercritical carbon dioxide

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Article information

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1039/B304082H
Article type
Paper
Submitted
11 Apr 2003
Accepted
02 Jun 2003
First published
24 Sep 2003

J. Mater. Chem., 2003,13, 2838-2844

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The preparation of novel nano-structured polymer blends of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene with polymethacrylates using supercritical carbon dioxide

A. J. Busby, J. Zhang, A. Naylor, C. J. Roberts, M. C. Davies, S. J. B. Tendler and S. M. Howdle, J. Mater. Chem., 2003, 13, 2838 DOI: 10.1039/B304082H

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