Transparent titanium dioxide/block copolymer modified epoxy-based systems in the long scale microphase separation threshold

Microphase separated epoxy-based materials modified with an amphiphilic poly(styrene-block-ethylene oxide) diblock copolymer (PS-b-PEO) with low amount of PEO-block as well as ternary systems modified with this block copolymer and containing via sol–gel in situ synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared and characterized. The obtained results indicate that block copolymer had enough amount of PEO-block in order to achieve microphase separated materials for a high range of PS-b-PEO contents, morphologies changing from spherical micelles to long wormlike micelles passing through vesicles upon increasing copolymer amounts. In the case of 20 wt.% inorganic/organic epoxy-based materials, addition of synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles into PS-b-PEO-(DGEBA/MCDEA) system led to location of the nanoparticles in PEO-block/epoxy-rich confined between two microphase separated PS-block-rich phases. Designed highly transparent multiphase inorganic/organic epoxy-based materials possess interesting specific properties such as high UV shielding efficiency and high water repellence.