Degradation versus self-assembly of block copolymer micelles

The stability of micelles self-assembled from block copolymers can be altered by the degradation of the blocks. Slow degradation shifts the equilibrium size distribution of block copolymer micelles and change their properties. Quasi-equilibrium scaling theory shows that the degradation of hydrophobic blocks in the core of micelles destabilize the micelles reducing their size, while the degradation of hydrophilic blocks forming coronas of micelles favors larger micelles and may, at certain conditions, induce the formation of micelles from individual chains.Comment: Published in Langmuir http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/la204625

Agro-materials : a bibliographic review

Facing the problems of plastic recycling and fossil resources exhaustion, the use of biomass to conceive new materials appears like a reasonable solution. Two axes of research are nowadays developed : on the one hand the synthesis of biodegradable plastics, whichever the methods may be, on the other hand the utilization of raw biopolymers, which is the object of this paper. From this perspective, the “plastic” properties of natural polymers, the caracteristics of the different classes of polymers, the use of charge in vegetable matrix and the possible means of improving the durability of these agro-materials are reviewed

Determination of diffusion coefficients of glycerol and glucose from starch based thermoplastic compounds on simulated physiological solution

Blends of corn starch with poly(ethylene-vinylalcohol) copolymer (SEVA-C) have been studied and reported as biodegradable. These materials are known to be sensitive to enzymatic action, evidencing a degradation of the starch phase in α-amylase assays. However, from the physical-chemical point of view the degradation of the blend is mainly associated with the leaching of glycerol, since other compounds are not released and no carbohydrates were found in the degradation solution. Based on these results, the present work attempts to determinate the respective diffusion coefficients. Four different experiments were performed, using samples with different thicknesses that were immersed in a simulated physiological solution. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to separate the sugar derivatives and glycerol from the degradation solutions. The obtained data were fitted to an empirical model to allow the estimation of the diffusion coefficient for glycerol and glucose, based on the analytical solution for Fick’s law of diffusion, and a good agreement was found (R² ≈ 1). The glycerol leaches quickly out during the first few days of immersion, stabilizing thereafter, presenting greater diffusion coefficients for thicker samples. As the quantity of saccharides in the solution remains almost invariable along the experiments, this work also confirms that the degradation process is difficult without the action of enzymes

Toward osteogenic differentiation of marrow stromal cells and in vitro production of mineralized extracellular matrix onto natural scaffolds

Uncorrected proofTissue engineering has emerged as a new interdisciplinary field for the repair of various tissues, restoring their functions by using scaffolds, cells, and/or bioactive factors. A temporary scaffold acts as an extracellular matrix analog to culture cells and guide the development of new tissue. In this chapter, we discuss the preparation of naturally derived scaffolds of polysaccharide origin, the osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells cultured on biomimetic calcium phosphate coatings, and the delivery of biomolecules associated with extracellular matrix mineralization

The Extracted-Zero: A Practical Solution for Transmission Zeros in Wideband Filters

This letter presents a practical solution to realize finite frequency transmission zeros with independent location for wideband evanescent-mode filters. The method consists of using offline resonators located at the input and/or output of the filter. In contrast with the extracted-pole technique commonly employed for narrowband filters to generate a pole-zero pair, each offline resonator is used here in such a way so that the sole transmission zero is actively used in the filtering function. The latter characteristic is what makes this technique practical for wideband filters as it prevents the presence of unfeasibly strong coupling coefficients, as well as avoiding impractical nonresonating node elements. The offline resonator, which we named extracted-zero, can be coupled to the first or last resonator of a wideband bandpass filter, and it is conveniently realized using the same technology as any other resonator of the filter. The extracted-zero can be seen as a first-order notch filter which is directly embedded into the bandpass filter (instead of being cascaded afterward). The feasibility of this solution is validated by the experimental results of a challenging 225-450-MHz bandpass filter (66.6% fractional bandwidth) which employs 17 inline resonators plus 2 extracted-zeros so as to obtain 50 dB rejection below 195 MHz

Design of In-Line Filters With Strongly Coupled Resonator Triplet

This paper presents a complete design procedure for in-line evanescent mode filters using an innovative pseudoelliptic structure, namely, the strongly coupled resonator triplet (SCRT). The SCRT can be seen as the combination of a strongly coupled resonator pair (SCRP) and a third resonator next to the pair. Compared to the SCRP, which at the passband frequencies generates a pole and a transmission zero, the new SCRT is capable of generating an additional passband pole, thus leading to the design of more compact in-line filters. Similar to the SCRP, the basic structure for filter design purposes is obtained by embedding the SCRT between two outer resonators. The coupling mechanisms and functional properties of this basic structure are explained. A suitable circuit model for the SCRT is introduced, thus allowing the synthesis of a low-pass prototype as well as the evaluation of the coupling coefficients and resonating frequencies to assign to the physical filtering structure. The proposed design procedure is validated by means of several examples, one of which including the detailed dimensions and experimental results of a manufactured prototype