MSED ViRTUAL Seminar
The Macromolecular Science and Engineering Division (MSED) of the Chemical Institute of Canada is dedicated to promoting the interests of the Canadian polymer science and engineering communities and recognizes excellence in polymer research at all levels with annual faculty, graduate, and undergraduate awards. Given the current restrictions that the COVID-19 pandemic has posed in organizing in-person conferences, and witnessing tremendous success that has been achieved by various online seminar series, MSED is initiating a series of virtual seminars (MSED-VS) to keep up the spirit of the researchers in this community, facilitate showcasing recent results, and enable researchers to connect and exchange ideas from the comfort of their home and/or office. MSED-VS will host talks in all areas of polymer science and engineering, ranging from polymer synthesis and characterization to their applications in various exciting areas of science and technology. For the Fall season, talks will be held on a monthly basis on Wednesdays at 1:30 pm. Participation is free of charge for everyone! If you are interested in presenting in MSED-VS, please contact the organizers.

How to join:

  • Once you have registered for the symposium series, you will receive a unique link to access the webinar. Please do not distribute this link.
  • Registration will be confirmed for upcoming sessions between September 16 to December 9. Should the series be extended you will be notified by email. 
  • Follow @nazemi_ali, @LaventureLab, @SimonRondeau  on twitter for the most up to date information.
Register Now for this Free Series

Upcoming Events & Speakers

Wednesday, November 18, 1:30 PM ET

Functional polymers for biomedical applications

Elizabeth R. Gillies
Western University

Functional Polymers for Biomedical Applications

Speaker: Prof. Elizabeth R. Gillies, Department of Chemistry and Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Western University, Canada

Abstract: Over the past couple of decades, transformative advancements in polymer chemistry have enabled the widespread preparation of well-defined polymers with specifically tailored functionalities, degradation properties, and molecular architectures. These advancements are enabling new applications of polymers in a range of fields and in particular biomedical areas, where polymer structure and function are key for the development of drug delivery vehicles, tissue engineering scaffolds, and a wide range of other functional biomedical devices. This presentation will describe recent work from our group in two main areas. First, a class of polymers, termed “self-immolative polymers” (SIPs), which are designed to depolymerize end-to-end upon the cleavage of stimuli-responsive end-caps from the polymer termini will be presented. The development of these polymers from a chemistry perspective, as well as their application in drug delivery nanoparticles and in coatings will be described. In addition, recent work on phosphonium polymers will also be presented. The use of phosphonium polymers as soluble and surface-active antibacterials as well as their incorporation into polyion complex hydrogels will be presented.

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Wednesday, December 9, 1:30 PM ET

Precise synthesis of pi-conjugated polymers and the yin and yang of polymer morphology

Christine Luscombe
 University of Washington

Precise synthesis of pi-conjugated polymers and the yin and yang of polymer morphology

Speaker: Prof. Christine Luscombe, Materials Science and Engineering Department, University of Washington, USA

Abstract: p-Conjugated polymers are being used in the fabrication of a wide variety of organic electronic devices such as organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices, and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Since the seminal work on the conductivity of polyacetylene by Heeger, MacDiarmid, and Shirakawa was published in 1970s, the field of organic electronics has grown exponentially. Our group has been studying and developing techniques to grow semiconducting polymers using a living polymerization method. This has allowed us to synthesize polymer architectures that we haven’t been able to access till now including polythiophene brushes, star-shaped P3HT, as well as hyperbranched P3HT. It also allows us to accurately control the molecular weights of P3HT and produce materials with a narrow molecular weight distribution. Our unique synthetic capabilities allows us to specifically control defects in these polymers. Our work in controlling polymer defects and their effect on microstructure and thus optoelectronic properties will be presented.

More recently, we have begun to study the mechanical properties of semiconducting polymers. As the polymers’ practical applications have extended into the health and life sciences areas (e.g., electronic skins and artificial muscles), the mechanical compliance (i.e., low stiffness and high ductility) has become increasingly important. This in turn requires one to establish an understanding of the relationship between polymer structure and their mechanical properties as well as their (opto)electronic properties. In this presentation, the synthesis of a series of indacenodithiophene-based semiconducting polymers will be discussed along with the feasibility of using these polymers in stretchable devices.   

The presentation will end with a perspective of unmet challenges and future directions in research.

Twitter: @luscombeUW;
Website: faculty.washington.edu/Luscombe

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Past Events & Recordings

Wednesday, October 14, 1:30 pm ET

ATRP: More active than dormant

Krzysztof (Kris) Matyjaszewski
Carnegie Mellon University

Presented jointly with Western’s Centre for Advanced Materials and Biomaterials Research

ATRP: More active than dormant

Speaker: Prof. Krzysztof (Kris) Matyjaszewski, J. C. Warner University Professor of Natural Sciences and Director, Center for Macromolecular Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, USA

Abstract: Copper-based ATRP (atom transfer radical polymerization) catalytic systems with polydentate nitrogen ligands are among most efficient controlled/living radical polymerization systems. The control in ATRP is defined by the dynamic equilibration between active propagating radicals and dormant alkyl halide species. Recently, by applying new initiating/catalytic systems, Cu level in ATRP was reduced to a few ppm. ATRP of acrylates, methacrylates, styrenes, acrylamides, acrylonitrile and other vinyl monomers was controlled by various external stimuli, including electrical current, light, mechanical forces and ultrasound to regenerate very low concentrations of activators.  ATRP was employed for synthesis of multifunctional polymers with precisely controlled complex molecular architecture with designed shape, composition and functionality. Block, graft, star, hyperbranched, gradient and periodic copolymers, molecular brushes and various hybrid materials and bioconjugates were prepared with high precision. These hybrids provide access to new materials for application related to biomedicine, environment, energy and catalysis.

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Wednesday, September 16, 1:30 PM ET

Conjugated polymers: From simple to complex architectures​

Dwight S. Seferos
University of Toronto

Conjugated Polymers: from Simple to Complex Architectures

Speaker: Prof. Dwight S. Seferos, Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, Canada

Abstract: For over 10 year my students and I have been contributing to the field of pi-conjugated polymers. Much of our work has focused on the implementation of ‘living’ methods to produce new classes of very well defined pi-conjugated polymers. Many of these polymers incorporate ‘heavy’ atoms such as selenium and tellurium. These novel macromolecules have been utilized as the active components in a range of devices including thin-film transistors, solar cells, and thermoelectric generators. The precise nature of the synthesis allows us and our collaborators to make reproducible observations about structure-property relationships. We have also used these synthetic methods to prepare a range of other conjugated polymer architectures, including block copolymers. These polymers are fundamentally important for testing the limits of phase-separation and solution self-assembly, as well for studying how morphology is linked to properties such as charge-transport. More recently, we have expanded our interest to include even more complex polymer architectures that are utilized to understand larger scale self-assembly in pi-delocalized systems. Other work in our group has focused on method development. Recently we have focused on methods that allow one to obtain perfectly monodisperse polymers, been able to isolate pure ‘living’ pi-conjugated polymer chains, and been able to polymerize highly unreactive species such as very electron deficient moieties. Some of these studies are guided by computational methods to understand each step of the polymerization mechanism in detail. The synthesis, (self) assembly, and properties of these macromolecules will be discussed.

Website: sites.chem.utoronto.ca/seferos/ 
Twitter: @SeferosGroup

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About the hosts

Ali Nazemi
Assistant Professor, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Canada
PhD, University of Western Ontario (Elizabeth Gillies)
Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Bristol (Ian Manners)
Postdoctoral Fellow, Queen’s University (Cathleen Crudden)
www.nazemilab.uqam.ca
nazemi.ali@uqam.ca
Twitter icon@nazemi_ali

Audrey Laventure
Assistant Professor, Université de Montréal, Canada
PhD, Université de Montréal (Christian Pellerin)
NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Calgary (Gregory C. Welch)
www.laventurelab.com
audrey.laventure@umontreal.ca
Twitter icon @LaventureLab

Simon Rondeau-Gagné
Assistant Professor, University of Windsor
PhD, Université Laval (J.-F. Morin)
FRQNT Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University (Zhenan Bao)
www.rondeaugagnegroup.com
srondeau@uwindsor.ca
Twitter icon @SimonRondeau