Novel redox-active ionic thermotropic liquid crystalline complexes of polyelectrolyte and ferrocenyl surfactants

• Published in: Chinese chemical letters 2012-05, Vol.23 (5), p.619-622
• Main Authors: Cheng, Zhi Yu, Ren, Bi Ye, Chang, Xue Yi, Liu, Rui, Tong, Zhen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ferrocenyl surfactant; Ionic self-assembly; Ionic thermotropic liquid crystal; Polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes; 二茂铁基; 氧化还原可逆性; 氧化还原活性; 活性离子; 热致液晶; 聚电解质; 表面活性剂; 配合物
• ISSN: 1001-8417; 1878-5964
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cclet.2012.03.003

Redox-active polyelectrolyte-surfactant complexes（PSC） were prepared via the ionic self-assembly of sodium poly（styrenesulfonate） （PSS） and ferrocenyl surfactant,（11-ferrocenylundecyl）trimethylammonium bromide（FTMA） in aqueous solution. The PSS-FTMA complex exhibited an ordered interdigitated monolayer mesomorphous structure with the long period of d = 3.13 nm,and was in the ionic thermotropic liquid crystal SmA state at room temperature.Interestingly,in the solid complex, the ferrocenyl moieties formed H-aggregation showing an increase in theπ-π~＊ energy transfer of cyclopentadienes in the ferrocene moieties as known from the blue-shift in the UV spectrum.The complexes showed higher thermal stability compared with their components due to the ionic interaction.The PSS-FTMA film had a good redox reversibility,which promised to be used in electrochemical sensors.