Polystyrene-graft-poly(ethylene glycol) copolymers (PS-g-PEG) were successfully synthesized using the "grafting-through" method. The graft copolymers and the surface properties of their coats were characterized by 1H-NMR, gel permeation chromatography (GPC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), static contact angle measurement, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Both DSC and TEM indicated that the graft copolymers had a microphase separated structure. AFM showed the microphase separated structure also occurred at the coat surface, especially at high PEG content, which could also be indirectly confirmed by the XPS and contact angle results. The formation mechanism of the microphase separated structure was discussed. 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 103: 1458-1465, 2007

This paper presents a novel and facile method for the fabrication of nanocomposite films with ordered porous surface structures. In this approach, a water-borne poly(styrene-co-butyl acrylate-co-acrylic acid)/silica nanocomposite dispersion was synthesized in situ by surfactant-free emulsion polymerization by using 3-allyloxy-2-hydroxy-1-propanesulfonate as a polymerizable surfactant. When this dispersion was dried to form a film at a certain temperature, an ordered porous structure could be directly obtained on the surface of the nanocomposite film. SEM, TEM, and AFM were employed to observe the morphology, and XPS and particle analyzer were used to analyze the surface composition of the ordered porous nanocomposite film and the particle size, respectively.

In this paper, a series of colloidal polymers with various Tg, composition, and sphere size were synthesized by surfactant-free emulsion polymerization and dispersion polymerization methods and then blended with colloidal silica particles to obtain polymer/silica nanocomposite latexes. When these nanocomposite latexes were forced dry at high temperature (e.g., 110℃) for 2h, a three-dimensional ordered porous structure was directly obtained. Neither complex processes nor removal of any templates like in a templating method is needed. These ordered pores should form from the top surface and then propagate layer by layer from the top surface to substrate.

The dispersion behavior of crystalline zirconia nanoparticles with a diameter of 3.8nm, synthesized from zirconium-(IV) isopropoxide and benzyl alcohol in tetrahydrofurane (THF), methyl methacrylate (MMA), and styrene (St), was investigated using 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (MPS), ethyl 3,4-dihydroxycinnamate (EDHC), allylmalonic acid (AMA), and trimethylolpropane mono allyl ether (TMPMA) as ligating stabilizers containing polymerizable vinyl groups. Analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses prove that the as-synthesized wet zirconia nanoparticles can be dispersed inTHFwithout any agglomeration when using the appropriate ligand concentrations. Surface-adsorbed water, if intentionally introduced during the washing step, and also air humidity seriously deteriorate their dispersibility. These results suggest that the excellent dispersibility of the zirconia nanoparticles is a direct consequence of the nonaqueous synthesis approach. Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) illustrate that MPS, EDHC, and AMA are chemically attached but TMPMA is physically attached to the surface of the zirconia nanoparticles. Transparent dispersions of zirconia nanoparticles can also be prepared in MMA with the help of MPS, EHDC, and AMA or in St with MPS and TMPMA, opening a promising pathway for the direct application of zirconia nanoparticles in polymer-based nanocomposites.

UV-curable polymer/nanosized indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) nanocomposite coatings were fabricated by blending ITO slurry and oligomer and reactive monomers. The preparation of ITO slurry and the effect of the ITO content on the electrical conductivity, hardness and optical properties of the nanocomposite coats were investigated. It was found that the electric conductivity and UV absorbance of the nanocomposite coats increased while the hardness and refractive index first increased then decreased with increasing ITO concentration since too high ITO resulted in the incomplete curing of the coatings.