Immiscible polydiene blocks in linear copolymer and terpolymer sequences

Abstract

Synthesis, molecular, and morphological characterization of two linear diblock copolymers consisting of two polydienes with specific geometric isomerisms and two triblock terpolymers with a combination of the same polydienes with polystyrene are investigated for both lower and very high molecular weights. This work is inspired from a previous research study which demonstrated that linear ABC terpolymers consisting of polystyrene, poly(butadiene), and poly(isoprene), with specific geometric isomerisms for the polydienes, lead to 3-phase microphase separated systems. We report also the coexistence of the core-shell double gyroid and the 3-phase 4-layer alternating lamellae morphologies with the majority fraction being the lamellar structure.