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Intelligent Materials (intelligent + material)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Polymers and Materials Science	60%

Selected Abstracts

Structural Fabrication and Functional Modulation of Nanoparticle,Polymer Composites

ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 10 2010
Hao Zhang
Abstract This review article summarizes recent progress in the fabrication methodologies and functional modulations of nanoparticle (NP),polymer composites. On the basis of the techniques of NP synthesis and surface modification, the fabrication methods of nanocomposites are highlighted; these include surface-initiated polymerization on NPs, in situ formation of NPs in polymer media, and the incorporation through covalent linkages and supramolecular assemblies. In these examples, polymers are foremost hypothesized as inert hosts that stabilize and integrate the functionalities of NPs, thus improving the macroscopic performance of NPs. Furthermore, due to the unique physicochemical properties of polymers, polymer chains are also dynamic under heating, swelling, and stretching. This creates an opportunity for modulating NP functionalities within the preformed nanocomposites, which will undoubtedly promote the developments of optoelectronic devices, optical materials, and intelligent materials. [source]

Water-soluble triply-responsive homopolymers of N,N -dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate with a terminal azobenzene moiety

JOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE (IN TWO SECTIONS), Issue 12 2010
Xinde Tang
Abstract Novel water-soluble triply-responsive homopolymers of N,N -dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) containing an azobenzene moiety as the terminal group were synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) technique. The ATRP process of DMAEMA was initiated by an azobenzene derivative substituted with a 2-bromoisobutyryl group (Azo-Br) in the presence of CuCl/Me6TREN in 1,4-dioxane as a catalyst system. The molecular weights and their polydispersities of the resulting homopolymers (Azo-PDMAEMA) were characterized by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The homopolymers are soluble in aqueous solution and exhibit a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) that alternated reversibly in response to Ph and photoisomerization of the terminal azobenzene moiety. It was found that the LCST increased as pH decreased in the range of testing. Under UV light irradiation, the trans -to- cis photoisomerization of the azobenzene moiety resulted in a higher LCST, whereas it recovered under visible light irradiation. This kind of polymers should be particularly interesting for a variety of potential applications in some promising areas, such as drug controlled-releasing carriers and intelligent materials because of the multistimuli responsive property. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 2564,2570, 2010 [source]

Light-sensitive Intelligent Drug Delivery Systems,

PHOTOCHEMISTRY & PHOTOBIOLOGY, Issue 4 2009
Carmen Alvarez-Lorenzo
Drug delivery systems (DDS) capable of releasing an active molecule at the appropriate site and at a rate that adjusts in response to the progression of the disease or to certain functions/biorhythms of the organism are particularly appealing. Biocompatible materials sensitive to certain physiological variables or external physicochemical stimuli (intelligent materials) can be used for achieving this aim. Light-responsiveness is receiving increasing attention owing to the possibility of developing materials sensitive to innocuous electromagnetic radiation (mainly in the UV, visible and near-infrared range), which can be applied on demand at well delimited sites of the body. Some light-responsive DDS are of a single use (i.e. the light triggers an irreversible structural change that provokes the delivery of the entire dose) while others able to undergo reversible structural changes when cycles of light/dark are applied, behave as multi-switchable carriers (releasing the drug in a pulsatile manner). In this review, the mechanisms used to develop polymeric micelles, gels, liposomes and nanocomposites with light-sensitiveness are analyzed. Examples of the capability of some polymeric, lipidic and inorganic structures to regulate the release of small solutes and biomacromolecules are presented and the potential of light-sensitive carriers as functional components of intelligent DDS is discussed. [source]

Thermally reversible materials based on thermosetting systems modified with polymer dispersed liquid crystals for optoelectronic application,

POLYMERS FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES, Issue 11-12 2006
A. Tercjak
Abstract The main aim of this research was the generation of new intelligent materials, in this case thermoreversible material, based on an epoxy matrix modified with liquid crystal for optoelectronic application. The samples were prepared by the reaction-induced phase separation (RIPS) of a solution of 4,-(hexyloxy)-4-biphenyl-carbonitrile (HOBC) and polystyrene (PS) in diglicydylether of bisphenol-A epoxy resin (DGEBA). The systems were cured with a stoichiometric amount of an aromatic amine hardener, 4,4,-methylene bis(3-chloro-2,6-diethylaniline) (MCDEA). Taken into account results obtained by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and transmission optical microscopy (TOM) equipped with a hot stage it was found that depending on morphology generated by RIPS of HOBC/thermoplastic particles in the epoxy matrix thermally reversible light scattering (TRLS) material can be obtained. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Visions for Regenerative Medicine: Interface Between Scientific Fact and Science Fiction

ARTIFICIAL ORGANS, Issue 10 2006
C. James Kirkpatrick
Abstract:, This article gives a brief overview of the authors' views on the future development of tissue engineering with respect to the challenges both to the materials and life sciences. Emphasis will be placed on the advantages of three-dimensional bioresorbable polymers in combination with relevant molecular cues and the application of autologous stem or progenitor cells. There is a requirement for much more diversity in the synthesis of so-called "intelligent" materials, which respond to external stimuli, as well as the development of novel drug and gene delivery systems. In addition, much more basic research is necessary in developmental biology and the application of modern cell and molecular biology to biomaterial questions. [source]