Abstract
A library of novel well-defined (bis)amide-based (co)polymers was prepared through postpolymeriza-tion modification of poly(pentafluorophenyl acrylate) with amines including ammonia and amide de-rivatives of amino acids. Products were characterized using a combination of NMR and FT-IR spectroscopies and size exclusion chromatography; results conformed to the expected structures ob-tained through quantitative conversion. The series of (bis)amide (co)polymers displayed rich phase behavior in aqueous solution such as thermoreversible gelation at low temperature and high concen-tration while other samples displayed inverse temperature dependent solubility (lower critical solution temperature (LCST)-type) behavior. A hydrophobically modified polyacrylamide copolymer displayed upper critical solution temperature (UCST) behavior in aqueous solution. Significantly, driven by polymer epolymer hydrogen bonding, copolymers self-associated into highly ordered, regular structures of several tens to hundreds of micrometers in size. Morphologies included sheet-like, rod-like and honeycomb-like structures and depended strongly on the chemical composition of copolymers.