Xin Zheng,Fang Huang,Lihui Chen,Liulian Huang,Shilin Cao,Xiaojuan Ma
Three ionic liquids (ILs) with increasing dissolution power, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([Bmim][Cl]), 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([Amim][Cl]), and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([Emim][Ac]), were selected for cellulose dissolution and film preparation through regeneration. The physical properties of the films were investigated, and the correlation between the IL used and the film properties was evaluated. The results indicated that the superior cellulose dissolution system, [Emim][Ac], had the most difficult regeneration process (i.e., more time was required for gel formation), followed by [Amim][Cl], and [Bmim][Cl]. On the other hand, the film produced from [Amim][Cl] had the highest crystallinity, transparency, and tensile strength, followed by the films produced from [Bmim][Cl] and [Emim][Ac]. It was inferred that stronger and more ordered molecular arrangements and inter-molecular interactions preferentially occurred during cellulose regeneration from [Amim][Cl] than during cellulose regeneration from [Bmim][Cl] and [Emim][Ac].
Ming Liu,Xinguo Zheng,Shiming Gong,Lulu Liu,Zhen Sun,Leishan Shao,Yinghan Wang
A novel functional diamine containing triphenylamine moiety and biphenyl as well as a long alkyl chain, 4-dodecyloxy-biphenyl-4′,4′′-diaminotriphenylamine (DBDTA), was synthesized and characterized. A series of polyimides (PIs) were copolymerized from DBDTA, 3,3′-dimethyl-4,4′-methylenedianiline (DMMDA) and 4,4′-oxydiphthalic anhydride (ODPA) via a one-step method. The chemical structures of the diamine and PIs were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR). Properties such as the solubility, rubbing resistance, thermal stability and pre-tilt angle of the PIs were investigated. Furthermore, the results were compared with the PIs-BZA derived from 4-dodecyloxy-biphenyl-3′,5′-diaminobenzoate (DBPDA). The PIs-TPA derived from DBDTA exhibited better transparency and thermal stability than the PIs-BZA from DBPDA. When the content of functional diamines was only 10%, the PI1-TPA derived from DBDTA displayed better solubility than the PI1-BZA from DBPDA. In addition, all PIs could induce uniform vertical alignment of the liquid crystals (LCs) before and after the rubbing process, but PI1-BZA only induced parallel alignment of the LCs after rubbing process. It is suggested that the PI1-TPA film is more resistant to the rubbing process than PI1-BZA.