CAREER: Fundamental materials studies on fast ion diffusion in model side-chain ionomers.

第1部分：非技术总结这个职业项目的目标是设计、制备和表征模型聚合物，以阐明对特殊塑料材料中离子运动参数的基本理解。同时，它将整合教育和推广计划，以激励和鼓励未来的STEM(即科学、技术、工程和数学)研究人员，招收女本科生从事STEM职业，并支持和留住研究生和博士后水平的女性STEM研究人员。PI的目标是合成新型聚合物，允许通过深入的材料表征来探索关于离子传输的特定假设。该项目结合了化学、材料科学和化学工程的技能和知识，以询问基本的结构-性质关系。这项工作产生的基本科学知识可以使新材料的应用取得进展，包括更安全的高能量密度充电电池。此外，化学科学和工程领域下一代研究人员的数量、多样性和培训将通过在高中开发和传播聚合物模块、为高中学生和教师提供实验室研究经验、有针对性地招募女本科生进行研究机会以及指导研究生和博士后女性团体来解决。第2部分：技术总结在这个项目中，将利用一个可调的模型系统来了解离子在离聚体离子聚集体中扩散的基本原理，这是一种促进无溶剂聚合物中快速单离子传输的潜在机制。本研究旨在通过跨新型聚合物合成和深入材料表征的有针对性的实验研究，推动对这种离子扩散机制的理解。具体地说，将合成具有可调末端离子基团的模型离聚体，这些离聚体自组装成定义的相，并进一步利用这些离聚体来询问影响离子域中反离子传输速率的参数。通过介观尺度的结构表征以及反离子和基质动力学的表征，在分子水平上将能够进行基本的结构-性质关联。这项研究与一项教育计划相结合，本科生研究人员，包括圣玛丽学院的女本科生，参与了研究活动，并将“我们世界中的聚合物”模块传播到高中。

PART 1: NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARYThe objectives of this CAREER project are to design, prepare, and characterize model polymers to elucidate fundamental understanding of the parameters governing motion of ions in specialized plastics materials. At the same time, it will integrate educational and outreach programs to excite and encourage future STEM (i.e., science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) researchers, recruit female undergraduate students to STEM careers, and support and retain female STEM researchers at the graduate and postdoctoral levels. The PI aims to synthesize novel polymers that will allow for specific hypotheses regarding ion transport to be probed by in-depth material characterization. The project integrates skills and knowledge of chemistry, materials science, and chemical engineering to interrogate fundamental structure-property relationships. The fundamental scientific knowledge generated by this work could enable advances in new materials for applications including safer high energy-density rechargeable batteries. Additionally, the number, diversity, and training of the next generation of researchers in the chemical sciences and engineering will be addressed by the development and dissemination of a polymers module at high schools, laboratory research experiences for high school students and teachers, targeted recruitment of female undergraduate students to research opportunities, and mentoring of a graduate and postdoctoral women's group. PART 2: TECHNICAL SUMMARYIn this project, a tunable model system will be leveraged to enable understanding of the fundamentals of ion diffusion in ionomer ionic aggregates, a potential mechanism for facilitating fast single-ion transport in solvent-free polymers. This research aims to propel understanding of this ion diffusion mechanism through targeted experimental studies that span novel polymer synthesis and in-depth material characterization. Specifically, model ionomers with tunable terminal ionic groups that self-assemble into defined phases will be synthesized and further leveraged to interrogate the parameters affecting the rate of counter-ion transport in ionic domains. Molecular-level through mesoscale structural characterization as well as characterization of counter-ion and matrix dynamics will enable fundamental structure-property correlations to be made. The research is integrated with an educational plan by involvement of undergraduate researchers, including female undergraduates from St. Mary's College, in the research activities and dissemination of a "Polymers in Our World" module to high schools.