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Molecules
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Molecular Insights into Soft Materials
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Molecular Insights into Soft Materials

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Macromolecular Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 May 2025 | Viewed by 1500

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xiaoyun Yan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
Interests: self-assembly; soft matter; phase separation; polymer chemistry; polymer physics; crystallography; nanostructure; porous materials; sustainability
Dr. Shu Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
Interests: polymer chemistry; polymer mechanochemistry; polymer physics; polymer mechanics; polymer fracture; physical organic chemistry
Dr. Changxia Shi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
Interests: ring-opening polymerization; polymerization catalysts; chemically recyclable polymers; polyesters; polythioesters; vitrimers; dynamic crosslinked networks
Dr. Shucong Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
Interests: polymer chemistry; liquid crystalline elastomers; microstructure reconfiguration; emergent dynamics; intelligent soft materials
Prof. Dr. Jianxun Ding

grade E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 5625 Renmin Street, Changchun 130022, China
Interests: polymer chemistry; self-assembly; nanoparticle; hydrogel; scaffold; biomaterial; controlled drug delivery; immunotherapy; regenerative medicine
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

From hydrogels, plastics, elastomers, and liquid crystals to polymeric composites, soft materials have emerged as a versatile platform in various applications, including wearable devices, biomedical implants, intelligent/responsive materials, the food industry, chemical/biological material recycling, substance absorption/separation, energy storage, and catalysis. These diverse applications stem from the emergent chemical, electronic, optical, and mechanical properties inherent in soft materials, facilitated by meticulous control over their nano-, meso-, and macroscopic structures. At the core of this multi-level manipulation lies the mastery of a molecular-level structure, serving as the foundational basis for all functionalities. Therefore, delving into the molecular insights beneath the impressive functions of soft materials represents a crucial and primary step.

This Special Issue aims to present an updated view on achieving advanced material structures, properties, or functions through molecular design. The primary topics covered include chemical properties, self-assembly behaviors, material responses, carrier behaviors, biocompatibilities, healthcare properties, and recyclability across a broad spectrum of soft materials. Whether fundamental or applied, contributions are encouraged from scientists in diverse disciplines, such as chemistry, material science, energy and environmental science, biomedical engineering, and others. We welcome research articles and review manuscripts that align with the aforementioned aspects, contributing to a deeper understanding of the molecular intricacies underlying the remarkable features of soft materials.

Dr. Xiaoyun Yan
Dr. Shu Wang
Dr. Changxia Shi
Dr. Shucong Li
Prof. Dr. Jianxun Ding
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • polymer
  • gel
  • plastics
  • elastomer
  • fiber
  • composite

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 8065 KiB  
Article
Narrow Range of Coagulation of Ion Associates of Poly(styrene sulfonate) with Alcian Blue Dye
by Dorota Ziółkowska, Alexander Shyichuk and Iryna Shyychuk
Molecules 2024, 29(17), 4017; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29174017 - 25 Aug 2024
Viewed by 572
Abstract
The ionic association of Alcian Blue dye with poly(styrene sulfonate) in aqueous solutions was studied for analytical purposes. The quadruple-charged cationic dye, Alcian Blue, was found to form colloidal ionic associates with poly(styrene sulfonate) anions. When the amounts of opposite charges are nearly [...] Read more.
The ionic association of Alcian Blue dye with poly(styrene sulfonate) in aqueous solutions was studied for analytical purposes. The quadruple-charged cationic dye, Alcian Blue, was found to form colloidal ionic associates with poly(styrene sulfonate) anions. When the amounts of opposite charges are nearly equal, the resulting ionic associates lose solubility and coagulate rapidly. This effect occurs within a narrow range of the ratio of poly(styrene sulfonate) to Alcian Blue. At the point of charge equivalence, the zeta potential of the resulting particles is zero, which facilitates flocculation. The resulting flocs enlarge to approximately 0.05–0.5 mm and precipitate rapidly. FTIR spectroscopy confirms that the precipitate contains both poly(styrene sulfonate) and Alcian Blue dye. Sedimentation kinetics was studied in detail using scanning turbidimetry. Due to the high molar absorbance of the Alcian Blue dye at 600 nm, the point of equimolar charge ratio was precisely determined by spectrophotometry. The complete precipitation of ionic associates occurs when the amount of poly(styrene sulfonate) ranges from 1.4 to 1.55 mmol per 1 g of Alcian Blue dye. Such a narrow coagulation range allows for the use of the studied effect for quantitative analysis. Both Alcian Blue dye and poly(styrene sulfonate) can be quantified if one of their concentrations is known. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Insights into Soft Materials)
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16 pages, 6190 KiB  
Article
Lattice Matching and Microstructure of the Aromatic Amide Fatty Acid Salts Nucleating Agent on the Crystallization Behavior of Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate
by Tianjiao Zhao, Fuhua Lin, Yapeng Dong, Meizhen Wang, Dingyi Ning, Xinyu Hao, Jialiang Hao, Yanli Zhang, Dan Zhou, Yuying Zhao, Jun Luo, Jingqiong Lu and Bo Wang
Molecules 2024, 29(13), 3100; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29133100 - 28 Jun 2024
Viewed by 652
Abstract
To solve the decrease in the crystallization, mechanical and thermal properties of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) during mechanical recycling, the aromatic amide fatty acid salt nucleating agents Na-4-ClBeAmBe, Na-4-ClBeAmGl and Na-4-ClAcAmBe were synthesized and the rPET/nucleating agent blend was prepared by melting blending. [...] Read more.
To solve the decrease in the crystallization, mechanical and thermal properties of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) during mechanical recycling, the aromatic amide fatty acid salt nucleating agents Na-4-ClBeAmBe, Na-4-ClBeAmGl and Na-4-ClAcAmBe were synthesized and the rPET/nucleating agent blend was prepared by melting blending. The molecular structure, the thermal stability, the microstructure and the crystal structure of the nucleating agent were characterized in detail. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) result indicated that the addition of the nucleating agent improved the crystallization temperature and accelerated the crystallization rate of the rPET. The nucleation efficiencies (NE) of the Na-4-ClBeAmBe, Na-4-ClBeAmGl and Na-4-ClAcAmBe were increased by 87.2%, 87.3% and 41.7% compared with rPET which indicated that Na-4-ClBeAmBe and Na-4-ClBeAmGl, with their long-strip microstructures, were more conducive to promoting the nucleation of rPET. The equilibrium melting points (Tm0) of rPET/Na-4-ClBeAmBe, rPET/Na-4-ClBeAmGl and rPET/Na-4-ClAcAmBe were increased by 11.7 °C, 18.6 °C and 1.9 °C compared with rPET, which illustrated that the lower mismatch rate between rPET and Na-4-ClBeAmGl (0.8% in b-axis) caused Na-4-ClBeAmGl to be the most capable in inducing the epitaxial crystallization and orient growth along the b-axis direction of the rPET. The small angle X-ray diffraction (SAXS) result proved this conclusion. Meanwhile, the addition of Na-4-ClBeAmGl caused the clearest increase in the rPET of its flexural strength and heat-distortion temperature (HDT) at 20.4% and 46.7%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Insights into Soft Materials)
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