EPR spin probe study of polymer associative systems

Molecular dynamics of polyacrilamide gels, polymeric micelles and hydrogel of polyacrylic acid and macrodiisocyanate was investigated by the ESR spectroscopy of spin probes. The local mobility in network junction of polyacrylamide gels is found to be essentially slower than that in the micelles created by the low molecular weight detergents and does not depend on the amount and length of hydrophobic groups (C9 or C12) in the polymer chain. The immersion of 10–30 mol.% of ionic monomers into the polymer chain (sodium acrylate) influences insufficiently on the local mobility of network junctions. In aqueous solutions, polystyrene-block-poly-(N-ethyl-4-vinylpyridinium bromide) block copolymers create polymeric micelles. The local mobility in the polystyrene core of the micelles is about twice as much as that in the solid polystyrene. Partially swellable polymer network in aqueous solutions was synthesized from polyacrylic acid and macrodiisocyanate. The local mobility in hydrophobic regions of the gel is substantially lower than that in the hydrophilic regions. It was concluded that the hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions and the local dynamics of them dictate practical application of the polymer associative systems.