Molecular Motifs Governing Gemini Surfactant Self-Assembly into Complex Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Phases

在这个由化学学部大分子、超分子和纳米化学项目资助的项目中，威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校的Mahesh Mahanthappa教授将研究支撑双子星（“双尾”）两亲体在水中自组装形成纳米结构软材料（称为溶致液晶（llc））的微妙力量平衡。通过化学合成和表征各种结构不同的gemini表面活性剂的LLC相行为，Mahanthappa和同事将确定特定的两亲性结构基序，这些结构基序指导gemini表面活性剂自发形成水双连续LLC。双连续llc是一种有用的材料，由相互渗透的水性和疏水性结构域组成，在宏观长度尺度上以三维方式渗透。这项工作将增强我们对控制水中分子自组装的力的理解，这具有重要的基础和实际意义。发现有利于双连续液晶形成的新分子设计标准可能对设计新的药物输送材料和用于水净化、燃料电池和电池的下一代膜具有重要意义。该项目的广泛影响将包括培养有机材料化学跨学科领域的本科生和研究生，通过学术出版物和国家会议报告传播研究成果，并为高中毕业生和大学新生开发实验室模块/演示，以说明表面活性剂在水中的自组装，从而设计出技术上有用的纳米结构材料。

In this project funded by the Macromolecular, Supramolecular and Nanochemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa of the University of Wisconsin-Madison will study the delicate balance of forces underpinning the self-assembly of gemini ("twin tail") amphiphiles in water to form nanostructured soft materials known as lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs). By chemically synthesizing and characterizing the LLC phase behavior of a variety of structurally diverse gemini surfactants, Mahanthappa and co-workers will identify specific amphiphile structural motifs that direct gemini surfactants to spontaneously form aqueous bicontinuous LLCs. Bicontinuous LLCs are useful materials comprised of interpenetrating aqueous and hydrophobic domains that percolate in three-dimensions over macroscopic length scales.This work will enhance our understanding of the forces governing molecular self-assembly in water, which is of significant fundamental and practical importance. Discovery of new molecular design criteria favoring bicontinuous liquid crystal formation may have important implications in the design of new drug delivery materials and next generation membranes for water purification, fuel cells, and batteries. The broader impacts of this project will include training undergraduate and graduate students in the interdisciplinary area of organic materials chemistry, disseminating research results through scholarly publications and national conference presentations, and developing laboratory modules/demonstrations for high school seniors and college freshman to illustrate surfactant self-assembly in water toward the design of technologically useful, nanostructured materials.