Instrumentation for Polymer Purification and Self-Assembled Nanoparticle Characterization

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We seek to purchase a combination of two complementary instruments that are essential for projects in the Ian Manners (IM) research group at the University of Victoria, particularly in the areas of self-assembly and new polymeric materials. One instrument will be used to purify polymers and the other will then be used to study the self-assembly of the resulting purified materials to form functional nanoparticles.******The funding of the combination of instruments targeted in this proposal will make a vital contribution to the international competitiveness of the IM group's NSERC-supported research in the highly active fields of nanoparticle synthesis via living crystallization-driven self-assembly (CDSA) and also new functional polymers based on main group or transition elements. The instrumentation will also facilitate the development of targeted applications in areas from optoelectronics, photocatalysis, biomedicine, to self-healing.******The first piece of equipment is a preparative scale Gel Permeation Chromatography (Prep-GPC) instrument that will enable the purification of polymeric materials based on the principle of size-exclusion. This instrument will perform a vital function concerning the purification of block copolymers and other amphiphilic polymers.******Following purification, these materials will then be used for self-assembly studies in the IM group. These will yield solutions of self-assembled nanoparticles/micelles that necessitate characterization in the solution phase. For this reason we also seek to purchase a Variable Temperature Dynamic Light Scattering (VT-DLS) instrument with a variable temperature controllable stage and the capability to measure zeta-potentials. DLS permits the characterisation of nanoparticles and colloids in solution by analysing the light scattered by the sample in solution. The ability to vary the temperature during measurements is critical to gaining deeper insight into how nanoparticles behave under non-ambient conditions, as well as the mechanism of self-assembly. In some systems, colloidal stability of the nanoparticles is afforded by the repulsive interactions of surface charges, and measurement of zeta-potential in concert with size is key to further understanding these effects.******The proposed instrumentation is also vital for the groups of coapplicants Cornelia Bohne (Chemistry, UVic) and Mohsen Akbari (Department of Engineering, UVic) whom focus on supramolecular gels and biomaterials, respectively. In addition, 5 other groups in Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering at UVic (Moffitt, Wulff, Elvira, Willerth and Saidaminov) (Elvira and Saidaminov are recently hired faculty) will use the equipment extensively. We anticipate that, in total, around 60 PhD students and Postdocs and 15 20 Undergraduates will benefit from use of the proposed equipment.*****