Morphological Behavior of Sulfonated Styrene-Ethylene/Propylene-Styrene Triblock Copolymers

Abstract

Sulfonated block copolymer ionomers possessing short (1K g/mol) styrene blocks and various rubber block lengths were synthesized via sequential anionic polymerization of styrene, isoprene, and styrene followed by hydrogenation and sulfonation. The ionomers were then characterized by small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The SAXS data indicate the presence of microphase-separated sulfonated styrene domains within the rubber phase. The morphology of the phase separation in this system is not clear from SAXS due to the absence of higher order maxima. Increased Bragg spacing was observed as the rubber block molecular weights increased, but decreased upon neutralization of the sulfonic acid groups with sodium hydroxide. The intensity of the SAXS maxima increased for shorter rubber block segments. AFM images confirmed the presence of microphase-separated domains which appear spherical.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 2006
Accession Number
ADA444744

Entities

People

  • Brian D. Mather
  • Frederick L Beyer
  • Timothy E. Long

Organizations

  • United States Army Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acids
  • Alkenes
  • Block Copolymers
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemistry
  • Copolymers
  • Materials
  • Molecular Weight
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Phase
  • Phase Separation
  • Polymers
  • Scattering
  • Sulfonic Acids
  • Two Dimensional
  • X Ray Scattering
  • X Rays

Readers

  • Polymer Science and Technology

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics
  • Space