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Chemically Fueled Volume Phase Transition of Polyacid Microgels
Author(s) -
Heckel Jonas,
Loescher Sebastian,
Mathers Robert T.,
Walther Andreas
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.202014417
Subject(s) - supramolecular chemistry , phase transition , colloid , materials science , soft matter , nanotechnology , transient (computer programming) , methacrylic acid , chemical physics , chemical engineering , computer science , chemistry , polymer , thermodynamics , molecule , physics , organic chemistry , polymerization , engineering , composite material , operating system
Microgels are soft colloids that show responsive behavior and are easy to functionalize for applications. They are considered key components for future smart colloidal material systems. However, so far microgel systems have almost exclusively been studied in classical responsive switching settings using external triggers, while internally organized, autonomous control mechanisms as found in supramolecular chemistry and DNA nanotechnology relying on fuel‐driven out‐of‐equilibrium concepts have not been implemented into microgel systems. Here, we introduce chemically fueled transient volume phase transitions (VPTs) for poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) microgels, where the collapsed hydrophobic state can be programmed using the fuel concentration in a cyclic reaction network. We discuss details of the system behavior as a function of pH and fuel amount, unravel kinetically trapped regions and showcase transient encapsulation and time‐programmed release as a first application.