Strong polyelectrolyte brushes(SPBs)play an important role in enabling material surface functionalization due to their unique stimuli-responsive properties.Although the unexpected pH responsiveness of SPBs has been re...Strong polyelectrolyte brushes(SPBs)play an important role in enabling material surface functionalization due to their unique stimuli-responsive properties.Although the unexpected pH responsiveness of SPBs has been revealed in the past ten years,it is still unclear if the pH-responsive properties of SPBs are affected by the brush thickness.In this study,we employed the positively charged poly[2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethylammonium chloride(PMETAC)and negatively charged sodium poly(styrenesulfonate)(NaPSS)brushes as model systems to explore the effect of thickness on the pH-responsive properties of SPBs.The results demonstrate that the pH-responsive properties of SPBs manifest different dependences on the brush thickness.Specifically,for both PMETAC and NaPSS brushes,the pH-responsive hydration and stiffness are influenced by the thickness,and the pH-responsive wettability and adhesion are almost unaffected by the thickness.This work not only provides a clear understanding of the relationship between the brush thickness and the pH responsiveness of SPBs,but also offers a new method to control the pH-responsive properties of SPBs.展开更多
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.22273098,52033001 and 22303032)the Key Project of Anhui Province Science and Technology Innovation Platform(No.S202305a12020030)+1 种基金the Science and Technology Program Project of Zhejiang Province,China(No.2025ZY01057)partially carried out at the USTC Center for Micro and Nanoscale Research and Fabrication。
文摘Strong polyelectrolyte brushes(SPBs)play an important role in enabling material surface functionalization due to their unique stimuli-responsive properties.Although the unexpected pH responsiveness of SPBs has been revealed in the past ten years,it is still unclear if the pH-responsive properties of SPBs are affected by the brush thickness.In this study,we employed the positively charged poly[2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethylammonium chloride(PMETAC)and negatively charged sodium poly(styrenesulfonate)(NaPSS)brushes as model systems to explore the effect of thickness on the pH-responsive properties of SPBs.The results demonstrate that the pH-responsive properties of SPBs manifest different dependences on the brush thickness.Specifically,for both PMETAC and NaPSS brushes,the pH-responsive hydration and stiffness are influenced by the thickness,and the pH-responsive wettability and adhesion are almost unaffected by the thickness.This work not only provides a clear understanding of the relationship between the brush thickness and the pH responsiveness of SPBs,but also offers a new method to control the pH-responsive properties of SPBs.
