Fabrication of Adsorption-Type Hierarchical Functional Films by Using a Facile Swollen Based Breath Figure Method

The morphology transition from primary to hierarchical adsorption-type microporous domains of amphiphilic block copolymer (BCP) honeycomb-structured films is demonstrated by a facile swollen based breath figure (BF) method. The characteristic parameters of poly(4-vinylpyridine)-block-polystyrene (P4VP-b-PS) hierarchical micro- and submicroporous films can be controlled by changing the length of segments or subsequent swelling conditions. A plausible mechanism is demonstrated in this research. A typical amphiphilic BCP with very low volume content of hydrophilic blocks (f(P4VP) <= 0.050) can efficiently stabilize water droplets and inherently assist in the formation of morphology transition. This BCP film can be used for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater, which additionally has enormous potential application in the field of novel optical devices, soft lithography, size-selective separation, etc.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates the morphology transition of amphiphilic block copolymer honeycomb-structured films from primary to hierarchical adsorption-type microporous domains. The characteristic parameters of these hierarchical films can be controlled by changing the length of segments or swelling conditions. The research also shows that amphiphilic BCP with low volume content of hydrophilic blocks can efficiently stabilize water droplets during the morphology transition. This BCP film has potential applications in wastewater treatment, novel optical devices, and size-selective separation.