An amphiphilic PEG-b-PFPE-b-PEG triblock copolymer: synthesis by CuAAC click chemistry and self-assembly in water
Résumé
A new PEG2000-b-PFPE1200-b-PEG2000 amphiphilic triblock copolymer was synthesized by copper(I)-
catalyzed alkyne–azide cycloaddition (CuAAC). The microstructure of this ABA triblock copolymer was
unequivocally characterized by NMR spectroscopy. Diffusion-ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) NMR experiment
revealed that 1H resonances belonging to PEG and PFPE are aligned on the same horizontal line,
thus implying that all these signals are due to the same macromolecule whose diffusion coefficient is
lower than that of PEG and PFPE homopolymers. Thanks to its semi-fluorinated backbone bearing robust
triazole rings, the PEG2000-b-PFPE1200-b-PEG2000 triblock copolymer exhibits good thermal stability with
no significant weight loss until 275 °C under air. This triblock copolymer undergoes self-assembly into
micelles (D = 10–20 nm) in aqueous solution as confirmed from cryogenic-temperature transmission
electron microscopy, DOSY experiment in D2O, and dynamic light scattering. The critical micelle concentration
was determined by pyrene fluorescence assay, and was found to be 0.1 mg mL−1.