논문초록
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Complex coacervation, resulting from oppositely charged polyelectrolyte solutions, forms polymer-rich coacervate and polymer-dilute phases. It's understood as mainly driven by electrostatic interaction among polymeric ions, entropy gain by counterion release, and polymer-solvent interaction parameter. However, investigation of solvent dielectric constant effects is restricted primarily due to the poor solubility of polyelectrolytes in non-aqueous solvents. To overcome this, we designed oppositely charged polymerized ionic liquids (PILs) with well-delocalized charges, enabling their dissolution in non-aqueous organic solvents with dielectric constants ranging from 16.7 to 65. Interestingly, the phase behavior in each solvent remained consistently similar, regardless of the dielectric constant, suggesting minor role of Coulombic attraction. Instead, entropy gain from counterion release and polymer-solvent interactions predominantly determines PILs’ complex coacervation phase behavior. |