In their study reported on page 670, Maria Kanidi and colleagues developed thin films of PS/PNIPAM polymer blends that show a reversible wetting behavior due to the thermoresponsivity of PNIPAM. Upon heating, the films show an increase in water contact angle due to increased hydrophobicity. Spin-casted films of PS/PNIPAM blends provide the possibility to develop smart surfaces by simple and controllable methods suitable for numerous applications that require control of wettability over large areas, such as self-cleaning surfaces, industrial surface coatings, tissue engineering, cell encapsulation, enzyme immobilization, sensing, and microfluidics, among others. (DOI: 10.1002/polb.24822)

In this article, the phase transition under high pressure of those formed isotactic polypropylene mesophase was investigated. It was found that annealing under pressure can promote the further arrangement of chain segments of the mesophase toward the crossed state in the orthorhombic γ-phase. As annealing pressure increased, onset and finish time of phase transition were both delayed. A critical annealing pressure was found to be between 1.6 and 1.75 GPa, which determined whether the phase transition took place or not.

The full understanding of the relationship between microstructure and mechanical property in thermoplastic elastomers requires the local characterization of its properties. However, there is very little direct evidence or visualization. In this article, the PeakForce Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping method was used to elucidate the structure–mechanical property relationship of a model nitrile rubber/poly(vinyl chloride) (NBR/PVC) blend. A three-phase coexistence of an unmixed NBR phase, the mixed phase, and PVC microcrystallites is directly visualized in NBR/PVC blends. The mixed phase is verified to considerably contribute to the mechanical properties of NBR/PVC blends.

Spin-casted polymeric films prepared by blends of PS/PNIPAM and PS/PS-b-PNIPAM, using different composition and drying conditions, show tunable wetting behavior upon heating. Films of PS/PNIPAM and PS/PS-b-PNIPAM blends exhibit different surface morphology due to the coexistence of phase separation and dewetting phenomena. Studying the wetting behavior of the films, the PS/PNIPAM films demonstrate reversible thermoresponsive wettability, whereas the PS/PS-b-PNIPAM films do not respond systematically to the stimulus of temperature.

This study deals with the micromechanisms of deformation and failure of single polymer fibers. Crack propagation in single polyamide 66 fibers was observed in the chamber of microscopes. The same tests were performed on fibers with larger diameter containing a controlled notch. The evolution of all measured parameters was followed in real time. Successful numerical simulation of the crack propagation was achieved, allowing the failure characteristics of the fibers to be determined.

Well-ordered lamellar morphologies with domain spacings ranging from d₀ = 54 to 140 nm were observed due to the high χ of PS and PDMS. Power-law scaling in d₀ describes an extended backbone conformation and reveals that a flexible side chain adds flexibility to the overall backbone conformation during self-assembly. The experimental findings build on the understanding of side chain conformation effects on backbone scaling and the unique molecular packing of densely grafted BBCPs.

Three perfluorinated type polymers are studied with different carbon spacer chains for electrochemical applications. One of them, with a three carbon spacer chain, displays zwitterionic character, while the other two, with three and six carbon spacer chains, are of an anionic type. The polymers are physically and electrochemically characterized. They show decent halide conductivity and one of them has an impressive OH⁻ conductivity of 122 mS cm⁻¹, which makes it a good candidate for electrochemical applications.

By using the nonaggregated sub-5-nm spherulite nanoparticles and solvent exchange method, a kind of novel transparent organic gel with super mechanical properties, high recoverability, and excellent environmentally stable performance was synthesized. A series of detailed studies on the mechanism of polymerization, interaction of components, bearing capacities, and mechanical stability in harsh environments were presented. This uniform and stable crosslinking network filled with nonvolatile solvent can fulfill the complex requirements for elastic carriers.