Synthesis, characterization, and property of ionized nano-objects with defined phase separation

The ionized nano-objects with defined microphase separation were prepared and properties were investigated. Firstly, the polyisoprene-b-polystyrene (PI-b-PS) based nano-objects were prepared through living anionic polymerization-based polymerization-induced self-assembly (LAP-PISA) technique, and the nano-objects were in-situ stabilized by divinylbenzene (DVB) agent. Subsequently, the PI segment on nano-objects or (co)polymers was sequentially brominated and ionized, and the ionic pairs were introduced. The successful synthesis of the nano-objects and the subsequent modification were comprehensively verified by multiple measurements. Furthermore, the thermal property of the nano-objects or (co)polymers was investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning-calorimetry (DSC) measurements, and the electric property was evaluated by impedance analyzer. The ionic conductivity (sigma), relative permittivity (epsilon(r)) and dielectric loss (tg delta) of ionized nano-objects were compared with the counterparts of ionized, linear PI-b-PS and PI. The results showed that the introduction of PS segment could strengthen the ionic system, and however, reduce the electric property. With the same composition, the ionized nano-objects should have more regular microphase separation and transportation channels for ions than that for the linear PI-b-PS copolymer. The sigma for the former was five times of that for the latter.