@misc{10481/81634,
year = {2023},
month = {3},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10481/81634},
abstract = {We have investigated the formation of stable clusters of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAM) chains in water at temperatures above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST), induced by the presence of sodium tetraphenylborate, NaPh4B. The hydrophobic Ph4B– ions interact strongly with the pNIPAM chains, providing them with a net effective negative charge, which leads to the stabilization of pNIPAM clusters for temperatures above the LCST, with a mean cluster size that depends non-monotonically on salt concentration. Combining experiments with physical modeling at the mesoscopic level and atomistic molecular dynamic simulations, we show that this effect is caused by the interplay between the hydrophobic attraction between pNIPAM chains and the electrostatic repulsion induced by the associated Ph4B– ions. These results provide insight on the significance of weak associative anion–polymer interaction driven by hydrophobic interaction and how this anionic binding can prevent macroscopic phase separation. Harvesting the competition between attractive hydrophobic and repulsive electrostatic interaction opens avenues for the dynamic control of the formation of well-calibrated polymer microparticles.},
organization = {Junta de Andalucia},
organization = {European Regional Development Fund - Consejeria de Conocimiento, Investigacion y Universidad	PY20-00241},
organization = {Agencia de Gestio D'Ajuts Universitaris de Recerca Agaur (AGAUR)
Generalitat de Catalunya	PID2021- 124297NB-C33},
organization = {Spanish Government},
organization = {Spanish Government through the "Severo Ochoa" Program for Centers of Excellence in RD},
organization = {MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033		
2021 SGR 01519
CEX2019-000917-S},
publisher = {ACS Publications},
title = {Interaction-Limited Aggregation: Fine-Tuning the Size of pNIPAM Particles by Association with Hydrophobic Ions},
doi = {10.1021/acs.macromol.3c00132},
author = {Faraudo Gener, Jordi and Bastos González, Delfina María and Drummond, Carlos},
}