Polymers

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Carbon/Natural Polymer Materials: Preparation and Applications

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A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 September 2023) | Viewed by 4620

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. I. Jénnifer Gómez

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Guest Editor

Department of Condensed Matter Physics, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 61137 Brno, Czech Republic
Interests: carbon nanomaterials; carbon dots; graphene; conductive polymers; organic synthesis; biomedical applications

Dr. Nuria Alegret

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Guest Editor

Center for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials (CIC biomaGUNE), Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), 20014 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
Interests: nanomaterials; carbon nanotubes; conductive polymers; 3D scaffolds; neuroscience; tissue engineering; cardiology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Engineering between natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials has attracted tremendous attention due to the inherent chemical and biological properties that the combination provides to a vast number of functional materials. This fruitful modification leads to the improvement of several properties, which potentiates and creates new applications in the polymer material field, in particular in areas such as food packaging, biomedicine, energy storage and electronics.

This Special Issue focuses on the current state-of-the-art synergy between natural polymers and carbon materials. Both original contributions and comprehensive reviews are welcome, discussing the latest research in the area or summarizing selected areas of the field. The scope of this Special Issue encompasses the preparation and applications of natural polymers engineering with carbon materials but not limited to the following fields: nanocomposites, electronics, films, sensors, ion exchange membranes for fuel cells, and biomaterials.

Dr. I. Jénnifer Gómez
Dr. Nuria Alegret
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

synthesis of natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials
nanocomposites based on natural polymers with carbon materials
natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials for biomedical applications
natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials for sensors
natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials for energy applications
natural polymers and carbon nanomaterials for environmental applications

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 4452 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Enhanced Adhesion of Electrospun Polycaprolactone Nanofibers to Plasma-Modified Polypropylene Fabric

by Lucie Janů, Eva Dvořáková, Kateřina Polášková, Martina Buchtelová, Petr Ryšánek, Zdeněk Chlup, Tomáš Kruml, Oleksandr Galmiz, David Nečas and Lenka Zajíčková

Polymers 2023, 15(7), 1686; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15071686 - 28 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1482

Abstract

Excellent adhesion of electrospun nanofiber (NF) to textile support is crucial for a broad range of their bioapplications, e.g., wound dressing development. We compared the effect of several low- and atmospheric pressure plasma modifications on the adhesion between two parts of composite—polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibrous mat (functional part) and polypropylene (PP) spunbond fabric (support). The support fabrics were modified before electrospinning by low-pressure plasma oxygen treatment or amine plasma polymer thin film or treated by atmospheric pressure plasma slit jet (PSJ) in argon or argon/nitrogen. The adhesion was evaluated by tensile test and loop test adapted for thin NF mat measurement and the trends obtained by both tests largely agreed. Although all modifications improved the adhesion significantly (at least twice for PSJ treatments), low-pressure oxygen treatment showed to be the most effective as it strengthened adhesion by a factor of six. The adhesion improvement was ascribed to the synergic effect of high treatment homogeneity with the right ratio of surface functional groups and sufficient wettability. The low-pressure modified fabric also stayed long-term hydrophilic (ten months), even though surfaces usually return to a non-wettable state (hydrophobic recovery). In contrast to XPS, highly surface-sensitive water contact angle measurement proved suitable for monitoring subtle surface changes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon/Natural Polymer Materials: Preparation and Applications)

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Review

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23 pages, 2795 KiB

Open AccessReview

Dendrimers: Exploring Their Wide Structural Variety and Applications

by María Pérez-Ferreiro, Adrián M. Abelairas, Alejandro Criado, I. Jénnifer Gómez and Jesús Mosquera

Polymers 2023, 15(22), 4369; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15224369 - 9 Nov 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2410

Abstract

Dendrimers constitute a distinctive category of synthetic materials that bear resemblance to proteins in various aspects, such as discrete structural organization, globular morphology, and nanoscale dimensions. Remarkably, these attributes coexist with the capacity for facile large-scale production. Due to these advantages, the realm of dendrimers has undergone substantial advancement since their inception in the 1980s. Numerous reviews have been dedicated to elucidating this subject comprehensively, delving into the properties and applications of quintessential dendrimer varieties like PAMAM, PPI, and others. Nevertheless, the contemporary landscape of dendrimers transcends these early paradigms, witnessing the emergence of a diverse array of novel dendritic architectures in recent years. In this review, we aim to present a comprehensive panorama of the expansive domain of dendrimers. As such, our focus lies in discussing the key attributes and applications of the predominant types of dendrimers existing today. We will commence with the conventional variants and progressively delve into the more pioneering ones, including Janus, supramolecular, shape-persistent, and rotaxane dendrimers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon/Natural Polymer Materials: Preparation and Applications)

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