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Poly(2‐oxazoline) Hydrogel Monoliths via Thiol‐ene Coupling
Author(s) -
Dargaville Tim R.,
Forster Rebecca,
Farrugia Brooke L.,
Kempe Kristian,
Voorhaar Lenny,
Schubert Ulrich S.,
Hoogenboom Richard
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
macromolecular rapid communications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.348
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1521-3927
pISSN - 1022-1336
DOI - 10.1002/marc.201200249
Subject(s) - oxazoline , polymer chemistry , cationic polymerization , self healing hydrogels , dithiol , ene reaction , polymerization , materials science , copolymer , biomaterial , alkene , swelling , chemistry , polymer , organic chemistry , catalysis , nanotechnology , composite material
Copoly(2‐oxazoline)s, prepared by the cationic ring‐opening polymerization of 2‐(dec‐9‐enyl)‐2‐oxazoline with either 2‐methyl‐2‐oxazoline or 2‐ethyl‐2‐oxazoline, are crosslinked with small dithiol molecules under UV irradiation to form homogeneous networks. In situ monitoring of the crosslinking reaction by photo‐rheology reveals the formation of soft gels within minutes. The degree of swelling in water is tunable based on the hydrophilicity of the starting macromers and the proportion of alkene side arms present. Furthermore, degradable hydrogels are prepared based on incorporation of a hydrolytically cleavable dithiol crosslinker. The rapid synthesis of the macromers and mild crosslinking conditions make these materials ideal for future biomaterial applications.