GPC/SEC System for Polymers and Carbon Materials Characterization

这项资助的目的是为拉瓦尔大学化学系的两名研究人员提供GPC/SEC系统的聚合物和碳材料的合成和表征。我们迫切需要这样的仪器，因为化学系唯一可用的仪器几乎不再使用了，因为它太旧了，制造商无法提供支持。因此，两位申请人及其研究生和博士后可能无法很快使用这种简单、常规的仪器来基本表征他们的大分子。该仪器与他们非常相关，因为它可以表征聚合物的分子量和多分散性指数，此外还可以使用半制备柱纯化大分子。PI的两个研究小组制备的大分子是共轭低聚物和聚合物、纳米石墨烯、石墨烯纳米带、开壳（双自由基）聚合物。由于这些大分子通常在室温下几乎不溶，因此需要用烤箱加热色谱柱来正确表征聚合物。该SEC系统将支持30多名科学家（学生、PDF和研究助理）参与化学各个领域的最新技术和创新研究项目，包括材料和聚合物化学。显然，这台仪器也将提供给化学系的所有其他研究生和博士后（150名研究人员）。我们部门缺乏可靠的仪器迫使研究小组将他们的样品送到魁北克（甚至安大略省）的其他设施，极大地阻碍了许多项目的进展，并导致不必要的时间和金钱损失。在拉瓦尔大学化学系，没有其他SEC系统具有所需的一系列功能。拥有这台仪器对于HQP的培训以及他们未来在材料相关领域的职业生涯也非常重要。

The purpose of this grant is to provide two researchers of the Department of Chemistry at Université Laval involved in the synthesis and characterization of polymers and carbon materials with a GPC/SEC system. There is an URGENT need to obtain such instrument as the only one available in the Department of Chemistry is almost out of use because it is too old to be supported by the manufacturer. Thus, the two applicants and their graduate students and postdoc will likely not have access to this simple, routine instrument for the basic characterization of their macromolecules very soon. This instrument is very relevant for them since it allows the characterization of the molecular weight and polydispersity index of polymers, in addition to allow purification of macromolecules using semi-preparative columns. The macromolecules prepared by the two PI's research groups are conjugated oligomers and polymers, nanographenes, graphene nanoribbons, open--shell (diradical) polymers. As these macromolecules are often barely soluble at room temperature, an oven to heat the column is necessary to characterize the polymers properly. This SEC system will support the state--of--the--art and innovative research programs of more than 30 scientists (students, PDF and research associates) involved in various areas of chemistry, including materials and polymer chemistry. Obviously, this instrument will also be made available to all others graduate students and postdocs of the Department of Chemistry (150 researchers). The absence of a reliable instrument in our department forces the research groups to send their samples to other facilities in Quebec (and even Ontario), impeding tremendously the progression of many projects and resulting in unnecessary time and money loss. There is no other SEC system with the set of features needed in the Department of Chemistry of Université Laval. Having this instrument is also very important for the training of HQP and for their future career in materials--related areas.