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Another amphiphilic diblock copolymer is poly(butyl acrylate)-PAA (PBA-PAA). Unlike PS-PAA, PBA-PAA assembles into micelles with a "soft," rather than glassy, core. Authors have been investigating its adsorption properties and how it modifies the properties of surfaces. Author notes that PS-PAA in water does not adsorb to hydrophilic surfaces, whereas PBA-PAA does. The reason, he believes, is that single polymers are trapped in the glassy core of PS-PAA but can wiggle out of the soft core of PBA-PAA. Outside the micelle, they are free to modify surfaces.
Surface modification is hugely important, Author says. Take the case of coloring a surface with a water-based paint. A surface that does not take the paint has to be modified first. If the surface-modifying agent can be formulated with the paint, he explains, coloring the surface will require only one step instead of two.
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