Ruojia was selected to receive a Wisconsin ACS Local Section Undergraduate Award for Excellence in Chemistry! She is one of seven recipients selected this year for this award by the Fellowships and Scholarships Committee. The committee considered nominations from faculty of graduating, soon to graduate, or recently graduated chemistry majors who have demonstrated excellence in both coursework and research. Congratulations on your stellar achievement!
The Boydston group goes to ACS Indianapolis!
On March 26-30, 2023, the Boydston group attended ACS Indianapolis to present their talks and posters. Congrats to the following group members for presenting their work! Sean Gitter Vinnie Rigoglioso Ruojia Li
Congrats to Sean and Xuejin on their recent publication in Angewandte Chemie!
This paper was done in collaboration with a former Boydston group postdoctoral scholar, Xuejin Yang, and the Michael group at University of Washington. This work reports on the post-polymerization modification of polynorbornenes.
C-H Functionalization and Allylic Amination for Post-Polymerization Modification of Polynorbornenes
Post-polymerization modification (PPM) via direct C-H functionalization is a powerful synthetic strategy to convert polymer feed-stocks into value-added products. We found that a metal-free, Se-catalyzed allylic C-H amination provided an efficient method for PPM of polynorbornenes (PNBs) produced via ring-opening metathesis polymerization. Inherent to the mechanism of the allylic amination, PPM on PNBs preserved the alkene functional groups along the polymer backbone, while also avoiding transposition of the double bonds. Amination using a series of aryl sulfonamides led to good control over the degree of functionalization, access to a range of functionalities, and tunable thermal properties from the resulting polymers.
Congratulations Julia for passing her RP!
Congratulations Julia for passing her research proposal (RP)! Keep up the great work 🙂
Congrats to Chang-Uk and Kyle on their recent publication in Applied Materials and Interfaces!
Their paper reports on additive manufacturing by heating at a patterned photothermal interface. We’re very HAPPI for them!
Additive Manufacturing by Heating at a Patterned Photothermal Interface
Direct additive manufacturing (AM) of commercial silicones is an unmet need with high demand. We report a new technology, heating at a patterned photothermal interface (HAPPI), which achieves AM of commercial thermoset resins without any chemical modifications. HAPPI integrates desirable aspects of stereolithography with the thermally driven chemical modalities of commercial silicone formulations. In this way, HAPPI combines the geometric advantages of vat photopolymerization with the materials properties of, for example, injection molded silicones. We describe the realization of the new technology, HAPPI printing using a commercial Sylgard 184 polydimethylsiloxane resin, comparative analyses of material properties, and demonstration of HAPPI in targeted applications.
Congratulations Brittany for passing her TBE!
Congratulations Brittany for passing her thesis background exam (TBE)! Keep up the great work 🙂
Congrats to Kyle on his recent publication in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering!
This paper was done in collaboration with a former Boydston group postdoctoral scholar, Jianxun Cui, Robert O’Dea and Prof. Thomas Epps at the University of Delaware. This work reports vat photopolymerization 3D printing of sustainable, lignin-derivable thermoplastics with broadly tunable thermal and mechanical properties and straightforward reprocessability.
Vat 3D Printing of Bioderivable Photoresins – Toward Sustainable and Robust Thermoplastic Parts
Vat photopolymerization 3D printing (3DP) of thermoplastic materials is exceedingly difficult due to the typical reliance on cross-linking to form well-defined, solid objects on timescales relevant to 3DP. Additionally, photoresin build materials overwhelmingly rely upon nonrenewable feedstocks. To address these challenges, we report the vat 3DP of bioderivable photoresins that produced thermoplastic parts with highly tunable thermal and mechanical properties. The photoresins were formulated from two monomers that are easily obtainable from lignin deconstruction: 4-propylguaiacyl acrylate (4-pGA) and syringyl methacrylate (SMA). These bioderivable materials generated printed parts that ranged from soft elastomers to rigid plastics. For example, for 4-pGA-based materials, the breaking stresses varied from 0.20 to 20 MPa and breaking strains could be tuned from 4.7% up to 1700%, whereas 3D-printed SMA-based materials resulted in higher breaking stresses (∼30 MPa) and Tgs (∼132 °C). Notably, parts printed from these bioderivable formulations exhibited thermoplastic behavior and were largely soluble in common organic solvents─expanding the application and repurposing of the 3D-printed parts. We highlight this feature by reusing a 3DP part via solvent casting. Overall, the tunable properties and thermoplastic behavior of the lignin-derivable photoresins showcase renewable lignin resources as promising biofeedstocks for sustainable 3DP.