Tuneable mechanical properties in low molecular weight gels

Chen, L. et al. (2011) Tuneable mechanical properties in low molecular weight gels. Soft Matter, 7(20), pp. 9721-9727. (doi: 10.1039/C1SM05827D)

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Abstract

The mechanical properties of gels are critical to the final targeted applications. Depending on the application, different properties may be required. Here, we show that the mechanical strength and ability to recover of gels formed using a low molecular weight gelator can be controlled by two independent factors (i) the volume fraction of co-solvent (in this case DMSO) in the system and (ii) the temperature cycle used. These differences correlate with the large scale structure of the network that is formed from the self-assembled fibres. This opens up the potential to prepare gels with very different properties at the same final conditions, allowing the effect of microstructure to be probed.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Adams, Dave
Authors: Chen, L., Raeburn, J., Sutton, S., Spiller, D. G., Williams, J., Sharp, J. S., Griffiths, P. C., Heenan, R. K., King, S. M., Paul, A., Furzeland, S., Atkins, D., and Adams, D. J.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Chemistry
Journal Name:Soft Matter
Publisher:Royal Society of Chemistry
ISSN:1744-683X
ISSN (Online):1744-6848
Published Online:15 June 2011

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