my.chemie.de
With an accout for my.chemie.de you can always see everything at a glance – and you can configure your own website and individual newsletter.
Fabian Eisenreich
With the aid of a photoswitchable catalyst system, both the chain length (left) and the composition (right) of the polymers formed can be controlled by light of different wavelengths.
Zoom in
A research team from Berlin has developed a novel catalyst system, which enables the regulation of multiple polymerization processes to produce biodegradable plastics solely by illumination with light of different colors.
The properties of a polymeric material are highly dependent on factors, such as the connected monomer building blocks as well as the length and composition of the formed polymer chains. Typically, these factors are predetermined by the choice of the employed reaction conditions. In order to overcome this limitation and generate materials with new and unprecedented properties, regulation of polymerizations by means of external stimuli represents an attractive goal. Similarly to dental repair, light serves to precisely control the location and duration of the chemical reaction during polymer formation.
A new method for the light-regulated production of biodegradable polymers has now been developed by chemists of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (HU), the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing Berlin, and the Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf. Their work is based on the design of a unique catalyst, which is capable to change its activity reversibly by illumination with light of different wavelength. Using their catalyst, the scientists were able to turn the formation of polylactide on and off on demand, which allowed them to control the chain length of the produced polymer strands. Moreover and for the first time, they were able to regulate the incorporation of two different monomers into the same polymeric backbone with light.
Fabian Eisenreich and Michael Kathan from the department of chemistry at the HU and first authors of the study explain: “With our remote-controlled catalyst we are in principle able to program the formation of the desired polymer strand by employing a specific order and duration of light pulses.” Their promising development is an important step toward smart production processes of (biodegradable) polymers with the aim to meet the growing demands of future applications, including light-guided 3D printing.
Batteries without critical raw materials
The market for rechargeable batteries is growing rapidly, but the necessary raw materials are limited. Sodium-ion batteries, for example, could offer an alternative. A joint research group from HZB and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin has investigated new combinations of electrolyte solutions ... more
Light-controlled molecules: Scientists develop new recycling strategy
Robust plastics are composed of molecular building-blocks, held together by tough chemical linkages. Their cleavage is extremely difficult to achieve, rendering the recycling of these materials almost impossible. A research team from the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (HU) developed a molec ... more
Light-regulated production of biodegradable plastics
Light is a powerful tool to manipulate a vast variety of chemical processes. The use of specific photo-chromic molecules allows chemists to perform reactions in a reversible fashion with a high spatio-temporal resolution. more
Alzheimer's: searching for a way out
Although the discovery of Alzheimer's disease now lies over a century in the past, the crucial events that influence the course of the disorder remain largely unknown. For some time now, researchers have been turning their attention to the tau protein, long known to be a component of deposi ... more
Dietrich Volmer, born in 1965, is Full Professor and Chair in Bioanalytical Chemistry at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. He graduated with a PhD in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Hannover in 1994, under the supervision of Karsten Levsen. After postdoctoral research as ORISE Fello ... more
Caroline Stokes, born in 1978, previously worked as a researcher at the Medical Research Council, Human Nutrition Research in Cambridge, England, and for the British National Health Service. She obtained her PhD from the Medical Faculty of Saarland University, where she subsequently qualifi ... more
Michael Kathan, born in 1988, studied chemistry at the Freie Universität Berlin and ETH Zurich, where he focused on fluorine chemistry and strained aromatic systems. After completing his master degree at the Freie Universität Berlin, he began his PhD thesis in 2015 in the research group of ... more
The q&more concept is to increase the visibility of recent research and innovative solutions, and support the exchange of knowledge. In the broad spectrum of subjects covered, the focus is on achieving maximum quality in highly innovative sectors. As a modern knowledge platform, q&more offers market participants one-of-a-kind networking opportunities. Cutting-edge research is presented by authors of international repute. Attractively presented in a high-quality context, and published in German and English, the original articles introduce new concepts and highlight unconventional solution strategies.
> more about q&more
q&more is supported by:
