Polymers, Volume 6, Issue 2

The editors of Polymers would like to express their sincere gratitude to the following reviewers for assessing manuscripts in 2013. [...]

Polypeptides are envisaged to achieve a major impact on a number of different relevant areas such as biomedicine and biotechnology. Acquired knowledge and the increasing interest on amino acids, peptides and proteins is establishing a large panel of...

We present a modeling study of photoinitiated polymerization in a thick polymer-absorbing medium using a focused UV laser. Transient profiles of the initiator concentration at various focusing conditions are analyzed to define the polymerization boun...

One hundred ninety three-nanometer candidate photoresist materials were synthesized by nitroxide-mediated polymerization (NMP). Statistical copolymerizations of 5-methacryloyloxy-2,6-norboranecarbolactone (NLAM) with 5–10 mol% of controlling co-monom...

The isothermal crystallization of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) homopolymers with different molecular weight was studied in a wide temperature range (140–230 °C) using different experimental techniques. Three different morphological regions, lab...

In this study, the in vitro bacterial growth inhibition, antioxidant activity and the content in bioactive components of Plectranthus barbatus, P. hadiensis var. tomentosus, P. madagascarensis, P. neochilus and P. verticillatus aqueous extracts were...

Collagen molecules are the primary structural proteins of many biological systems. Much progress has been made in the study of the structure and function of collagen, but fundamental understanding of its electronic structures at the atomic level is s...

Adobe constructions were widespread in the ancient world, and earth was one of the most used construction materials in ancient times. Therefore, the preservation of adobe structures, especially against seismic events, is nowadays an important structu...

Empa’s research efforts in the 1990s provided evidence that a considerable increase of the fatigue strength of welded aluminum beams can be achieved by externally bonding pultruded carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates using rubber-toughen...

This review provides a current status report of the various n-type polymer acceptors for use as active materials in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs). The polymer acceptors are divided into four categories. The first section of this review focuses on...

One-way glass fibre reinforced polymer (GFRP) reinforced concrete slabs at elevated temperatures are investigated through numerical modeling. Serviceability and strength requirements of ACI-440.1R are considered for the design of the slabs. Diagrams...

Production of rubber products with biobased constituents from biomass resources is desirable for conserving our planet’s limited resources and preventing global warming. Herein, a natural rubber model compound was produced to determine the biobased c...

The mechanical behavior of the adhesive interface between the fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strip and the concrete substrate often controls the response of FRP-strengthened reinforced concrete (RC) members. Plenty of studies devoted to understanding...

Hyaluronic acid (HA) has currently several therapeutic applications: in ophthalmology, osteoarthritis, wound healing, tissue regeneration, postoperative anti-adhesion and anesthetic medicine. In the last ten years, it has also been successfully inves...

The vast majority of today’s chemical products are based on crude oil. An attractive and sustainable alternative feedstock is biomass. Since crude oil and biomass differ in various properties, new synthesis pathways and processes have to be develope...

Poly(2-oxazoline) networks with varying swelling degrees and varying hydrophilicity can be synthesized from 2-ethyl-2-oxazoline, 2-nonyl-2-oxazoline, 2-9’-decenyl-2-oxazoline and 2,2’-tetramethylene-bis-2-oxazoline in one-pot/one-step strategies. Th...

Static-cyclic shear load tests and tensile tests on retrofitted masonry walls were conducted at UAS Fribourg for an evaluation of the newly developed retrofitting system, the S&P ARMO-System. This retrofitting system consists of a composite of ca...

Based on silsesquioxanes (SSO) derived from the hydrolytic condensation of (γ-glycidyloxypropyl)trimethoxysilane (GPMS) and titanium tetrabutoxide (TTB), hybrid films on aluminum alloy (AA), film-GPMS-SSO (f-GS) and f-GS-TTB_i% (f-GSTT_5%–25%, i = 5,...

Well-defined diblock and triblock copolymers, star polymers, and concentrated polymer brushes on solid surfaces were prepared using living radical polymerization with organic catalysts. Polymerizations of methyl methacrylate, butyl acrylate, and sele...