Gel Permeation Chromatography for Functional Materials Characterization

需要新的聚合材料来制造先进的塑料、涂料和复合材料，用于广泛的应用，从新的低能量光源到允许可涂塑料的新型粘合剂。这些新一代的聚合材料需要结合的功能，可以响应和相互作用的环境，例如。通过电刺激来发光或与金属或不粘聚合物（如聚四氟乙烯）形成紧密的结合相互作用。因此，必须发展新的化学和聚合合成来制造这种功能材料。同时，这些努力所产生的实验聚合物必须使用各种研究技术进行测量和表征。凝胶渗透色谱法（GPC）是一种最常用的聚合物表征方法，它通过在溶液中按尺寸分离聚合物链样品来操作。检测器然后确定通过GPC柱的物质洗脱量作为样品通过所需时间的函数。因此，短链聚合物比长链聚合物洗脱得更快。从这个时间信息以及使用光散射的检测，我们可以了解聚合物在溶液中的形状。这些信息有助于我们预测聚合物的特性，如强度和韧性，以及性能，如聚合物如何加工。在使用这些下一代聚合物/粘合剂/塑料制造商业产品之前，必须了解聚合物的所有这些特性。

New polymeric materials are required to make advanced plastics, coatings and composite materials for a broad range of applications ranging from new low energy light sources to new adhesives that will allow for paintable plastics. These next generation polymeric materials require the incorporation of functionality that can respond and interact with their environment, eg. electrical stimulus to emit light or form tight binding interactions with metals or non-stick polymers such as Teflon. Thus, novel chemistry and polymerization syntheses must be developed to make such functional materials. Meanwhile, the experimental polymers resulting from these efforts must be measured and characterized using a variety of research techniques. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) is the single most common method for polymer characterization, and operates by separating samples of polymer chains by their size in solution. Detectors then determine the amount of material eluting through the GPC column as a function of the time it takes for a sample to pass through. Thus, short chain polymers elute more quickly than long chain polymers. From this time information as well as detection using light scattering we can learn about how the shape of polymers in solution. This information helps us to predict polymer properties, such as strength and toughness, and performance, such as how the polymers can be processed. All of these features of the polymer must be understood before commercial products can be made with these next generation polymers/adhesives/plastics.