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Title: Multivalent ions induce lateral structural inhomogeneities in polyelectrolyte brushes

Journal Article · · Science Advances
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [2];  [3]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [3];  [2];  [2]
  1. Univ. of Chicago, IL (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Lemont, IL (United States); Nanyang Technological Univ. (Singapore)
  2. Univ. of Chicago, IL (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Lemont, IL (United States)
  3. Univ. of Massachusetts, Lowell, MA (United States)
  4. Univ. of Chicago, IL (United States); Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States)

Subtle details about a polyelectrolyte’s surrounding environment can dictate its structural features and potential applications. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), surface forces apparatus (SFA) measurements, and coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations are combined to study the structure of planar polyelectrolyte brushes [poly(styrenesulfonate), PSS] in a variety of solvent conditions. More specifically, AFM images provide a first direct visualization of lateral inhomogeneities on the surface of polyelectrolyte brushes collapsed in solutions containing trivalent counterions. These images are interpreted in the context of a coarse-grained molecular model and are corroborated by accompanying interaction force measurements with the SFA. Our findings indicate that lateral inhomogeneities are absent from PSS brush layers collapsed in a poor solvent without multivalent ions. Together, AFM, SFA, and our molecular model present a detailed picture in which solvophobic and multivalent ion–induced effects work in concert to drive strong phase separation, with electrostatic bridging of polyelectrolyte chains playing an essential role in the collapsed structure formation.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
1476643
Journal Information:
Science Advances, Vol. 3, Issue 12; ISSN 2375-2548
Publisher:
AAASCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 77 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (11)

Morphologies of a polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto a cubic colloid in the presence of trivalent ions journal January 2019
From octopus to dendrite—Semiflexible polyelectrolyte brush condensates in trivalent counterion solution journal October 2018
Surface morphologies of spherical polyelectrolyte brushes induced by trivalent salt ions journal January 2018
From Octopus to Dendrite - Semiflexible Polyelectrolyte Brush Condensates in Trivalent Counterion Solution text January 2018
Surface Patterns of a Tetrahedral Polyelectrolyte Brush Induced by Grafting Density and Charge Fraction journal November 2019
The molecular mechanisms underlying mussel adhesion journal January 2019
New frontiers for the materials genome initiative journal April 2019
Self-assembly of polyelectrolyte diblock copolymers at monovalent and multivalent counterions journal January 2019
Sea cucumber mimicking bacterial cellulose composite hydrogel with ionic strength-sensitive mechanical adaptivity journal January 2018
Structure and Functionality of Polyelectrolyte Brushes: A Surface Force Perspective journal October 2018
Effect of calcium ions on the interactions between surfaces end-grafted with weak polyelectrolytes journal October 2018

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