Seminar Speaker: Scott Danielsen, Duke University

Mucus, Gels, Coacervates, and other “Sticky” Associative Polymers

Abstract

Polymer networks are complex systems of components connected by physical and chemical associations, presenting an opportunity to exert molecular-level control of the network connectivity and macroscopic material properties. In particular, polymers linked by reversible associations form the basis of many synthetic and biological systems and are an evolving class of materials exhibiting promising properties attributed to their dynamic nature. Most reversible cross-links are formed by attractive short-ranged physical interactions, attributable to a variety of different non-covalent interactions. In developing a general description for such associative polymers, I will highlight how control of the sticker bonds enables self-assembled structures on multiple scales from the single-chain to the macroscopic fluid. Pulmonary mucus will be used as a case study, wherein understanding the structural organization and resultant mechanical properties of mucus in the airway illustrates how sticky polymers associate intra- and inter-molecularly both in the bulk fluid and at interfaces. Further understanding of how to modulate these associations provides design rules for developing new materials and therapeutic approaches.

Speaker Biography

Scott P. O. Danielsen received his B.S.E. degree in chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in 2014. Following a stint as a products technologist at ExxonMobil Research & Engineering, he received his Ph.D. in chemical engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara under the direction of Rachel Segalman and Glenn Fredrickson in 2018. He is currently a postdoctoral associate at Duke University mentored by Michael Rubinstein and is a visiting scholar at the Marsico Lung Institute of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. His primary research interests are the structure and dynamics of non-ideal structured fluids, particularly polymer solutions, and biological fluids, with a focus on designing new functional materials and processing conditions.