Abstract

Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) is a weak polyelectrolyte presenting negative charge at basic condition when the carboxylic group loses a proton. These carboxylate group can interact with polycations and metal ions to form stable polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs), leading to tunable properties and multifunctional nanoscale structures through chemical reactions. This research focuses on nanofiber and nanoparticle fabricated by PAA-based PECs. We demonstrated the effect of ferric ion concentration on the mechanical properties of PAA-based single naonofiber by using dark field microscopy imaging and persistence length analysis. The application of PAA-based nanofiber mats loaded with MnO2 for supercapacitors was also explored. As a free-standing and flexible supercapacitor electrode, the nanofiber mat exhibited outstanding properties including high specific capacitance, excellent reversible redox reactions, and fast charge/discharge ability. Since PAA is a biocompatible polymer, PAA-based PEC was applied as a drug-carrier in a drug delivery system. In this project, core-shell nanoparticles were fabricated with chitosan as the core and PAA as the shell to incorporate with the drug gemcitabine. Several parameters were investigated to obtain the optimal nanoparticle size. The as-prepared drug delivery system shows prolonged releasing profile.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2018

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Zhai, Lei

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Chemistry

Degree Program

Chemistry

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0007045

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0007045

Language

English

Release Date

May 2018

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Open Access)

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Included in

Chemistry Commons

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