strongly influence the structures of the complexes. The complexes formed by the two
polyelectrolytes with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide with a longer alkyl tail and
the fan-shaped 3,4,5-tris(dodecyloxy)-benzenamine exhibit lamellar structures. In
these complexes, the chemical structure of the backbone does not show a significant
influence on the phase behavior because the stronger electrostatic interactions
overwhelm the hydrogen bonding in PSPAS and dominate the self-assembling
process.
Future Directions
Although a lot of research has been done in the synthesis and phase behavior study
of MJLCPs, there are still many challenges. To address these challenges, more work
can be carried out in the following aspects in the future: (1) design of monomers
which can be more easily synthesized and polymerized, (2) cost- and time-saving
synthetic methods, (3) calculation and computer simulation which can accurately
predict phase behaviors and guide molecular design, and (4) functional materials
based on MJLCPs for practical applications.
HOOC
COOH
R
R
BPO, Chlorobenzene
90 o C, 24 h
R
R
CF3COOH, CHCl3
r.t, 7 h
COOC(CH3)3
R =
HOOC
COOH
N
R
N
R
HOOC
COOH
N
NH
O
N
NH
O
OOC
H3CO
N
COOCnH2n+1
N
COO
OCnH2n+1
N
OCnH2n+1
Hydrogen-bonded MJLCPs
NN
NNEC
NEn (n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 6)
PPE
PPA
PPA
NECn (n = 4, 6, 12)
NCn (n = 6, 12)
x
x
x
x
Scheme 13 Preparation of MJLCPs by hydrogen bonding (Xu et al. 2012)
54
Z. Shen