Macroporous polymer thin film prepared from temporarily stabilized water-in-oil emulsion

J Phys Chem B. 2006 Jul 20;110(28):13959-64. doi: 10.1021/jp0616361.

Abstract

We report a simple and convenient method for fabricating ordered porous structure in a polymeric thin film. A temporarily stabilized water-in-oil emulsion, where aqueous droplets were dispersed in the medium of polymer-organic solvent solution, was utilized for the preparation of porous structure. The water-in-oil emulsion was simply prepared by sonicating the mixture of water and polymer-organic solvent solution without any colloid stabilizer. The growth of aqueous droplets was profoundly retarded by dissolving a small amount of sucrose, selectively soluble in the dispersed phase. The prepared emulsion was recovered onto a substrate through dip-coating and subsequently air-dried to get a well-ordered porous polymer film. The polymer content in the polymer solution phase and the compositional ratio of the aqueous phase to the polymer solution phase was optimized to fabricate well-ordered structures.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Benzene / chemistry*
  • Emulsions / chemistry*
  • Membranes, Artificial*
  • Particle Size
  • Polymers / chemistry*
  • Porosity
  • Water / chemistry

Substances

  • Emulsions
  • Membranes, Artificial
  • Polymers
  • Water
  • Benzene