Calcium rich biocomposites with interesting optical properties: A polymer driven approach

POLY 291

Swaminathan Sindhu, nniss@nus.edu.sg1, Subbiah Jagadesan, g0203614@nus.edu.sg2, Hairong Li, g0304909@nus.edu.sg2, and Suresh Valiyaveettil, chmsv@nus.edu.sg3. (1) NUS Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Initiative (NUSNNI), National University of Singapore, 2 Science Drive 3, Singapore, 117542, Singapore, (2) Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore, 117543, Singapore, (3) Singapore-MIT Alliance, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive, Singapore 117543, Singapore
Nature uses various macromolecules to produce highly complex structures through self-assembly process. The knowledge of such controlled assembly can be used in the design and development of new synthetic structures with interesting properties. The role of modified conjugated polymers in the nucleation, growth and morphology of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), an important natural material, is reported. In situ incorporation of sulfonated poly(p-phenylenes) (PPP) into highly porous calcium carbonate matrix was achieved and a detailed structure-property relationship of the morphological changes in CaCO3 with respect to the additional alkyl chain on the polymer backbone was analyzed. Synthetic conditions are fine-tuned properly to obtain hybrid thin films or iso-oriented crystals of calcium carbonate. These hybrid films were micro patterned using laser direct write lithography. Here a simple, focused laser beam was used to fabricate structures with different shapes on the hybrid thin films.
 

General Papers: Polymers and Biology
1:00 PM-4:20 PM, Monday, 11 September 2006 San Francisco Marriott -- Salon 12/13, Oral

Division of Polymer Chemistry

The 232nd ACS National Meeting, San Francisco, CA, September 10-14, 2006