Asymmetric Copolymers: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications of Gradient and Other Partially Segregated Copolymers

Junliang Zhang, Barbara Farias-Mancilla, Mathias Destarac, Ulrich S. Schubert, Daniel J. Keddie, Carlos Guerrero-Sanchez, Simon Harrisson

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

45 Scopus citations

Abstract

Asymmetric copolymers are a class of materials with intriguing properties. They can be defined by a distribution of monomers within the polymer chain that is neither strictly segregated, as in the case of block copolymers, nor evenly distributed throughout each chain, as in the case of statistical copolymers. This definition includes gradient copolymers as well as block copolymers that contain segments of statistical copolymer. In this review, different methods to synthesize asymmetric copolymers are first discussed. The properties of asymmetric copolymers are investigated in comparison to those of block and random counterparts of similar composition. Finally, some examples of applications of asymmetric copolymers, both academic and industrial, are demonstrated. The aim of this review is to provide a perspective on the design and synthesis of asymmetric copolymers with useful applications.

Original languageEnglish
Article number1800357
JournalMacromolecular Rapid Communications
Volume39
Issue number19
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2018

Keywords

  • copolymerization
  • living polymerization
  • reversible deactivation radical polymerization
  • self-assembly

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