Department of Polymer Chemistry

Laboratory № 1 – Synthesis of Highly Thermostable Polymers

1. Synthesis of new heterocyclic polymer structures (poly(phenylquinoline)s, poly(phenylquinoline carbazole)s, and poly(phenylquinoline-indole-carbazole)s) possessing charge carrier and luminescent properties.

2. Synthesis of segmented copolyester-imides and copolyurethane-imides for a new generation thermoplastic elastomers, search for new polymers that can be applied as materials for composite membranes used in nanofiltration, pervaporation, and gas separation.

3. Synthesis of thermoplastic and thermosetting polyimides and organic-inorganic systems (nanocomposites) based on these polyimides intended for manufacturing highly thermostable reinforced structural materials.

4. Synthesis of polymers for preparation of Langmuir–Blodgett films that are intended for use in microelectronics and microsystem technology.

Head of the Laboratory: V.M. Svetlichny, Doctor of Chemical Sciences

Laboratory № 2 – Hydrophilic Polymers

1. Development of scientific basis of synthesis of hydrophilic functional monomers, studies of their homopolymerization and copolymerization, synthesis of water-soluble and crosslinked reactive polymers, studies of their structure, properties, and intrinsic biological activity.

2. Investigation of elementary chemical processes and mechanisms of formation and transformation of water-soluble polymers containing various functional groups, their reactions with low molecular weight and macromolecular model compounds and biologically active substances.

3. Establishing the relationship between chemical structure and biological activity of functional polymers, study of the effects of macromolecular nature and bond types on biological properties of compounds modified with polymers.

4. Development and study of nanostructured polymer-based systems, nanocomposites and target drug delivery systems for biology and medicine.

5. Theoretical study of elementary chemical processes in polymerization reactions and reactions of model low molecular weight compounds. Study of structure and electron configurations of molecules and their complexes.

Head of the Laboratory: Prof. E.F. Panarin, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Chemical Sciences

Laboratory № 4: Physico-chemical Methods for Studying Polymeric Nanosystems and Biotechnological Products

1. Development of methods for controlling selectivity of sorption of biologically active compounds on polymeric sorbents.

2. Development and study of functional soluble and crosslinked polymeric materials intended for use in removal of toxic substances (uric acid, glucose, endotoxin, etc.) from human organism by efferent treatment.

3. Synthesis and study of biospecific polymers for further use in preliminary purification of cultural media and native solutions of antibiotics (including antitumor and antibacterial preparations). Development of «down—stream» processes of preparation of high-purity pharmaceutical substances (antibiotics, enzymes, etc.) complying with international pharmaceutical standards.

4. Studying processes of formation and physico-chemical properties of hybrid polymeric nanocomposites based on particles of biogenic elements. Development of enzyme immobilization methods involving use of nanoparticles of biogenic elements; application of these methods in creating prolonged action preparations, increasing their stability and activity.

Head of the Laboratory: I.S. Garkushina, Candidate of Technical Sciences

Laboratory № 5 — Natural Polymers

1. Study of reactivity in chemical transformations, morphology and supramolecular organization of natural polysaccharides of various origins.

2. Investigation of solvation and dissolution of natural and modified polysaccharides, physico-chemical properties of solutions of polysaccharides and their mixtures with other polymers in a common solvent.

3. Preparation and study of nanostructured biomedical materials on the basis of natural and modified polysaccharides.

4. Modification of biologically active compounds (peptides, proteins, antibiotics, etc.) with bio- and chemodegradable oligomers and polymers providing target delivery and controlled release of biologically active compounds.

5. Study of complexation between DNA and low molecular weight peptides and vitamins by gel chromatography, spectroscopy, and DNA melting temperature measurements.

6. Development of tangent microfiltration methods for fractionation of high molecular weight biopolymers on track membranes.

7. Development and study of composite sorbents based on cellulose impregnated with nanodiamonds.

Head of the Laboratory: Yu.A. Skorik, Candidate of Chemical Sciences

Laboratory № 12 – Polymer Sorbents and Carriers for Biotechnology

1. Development of synthetic methods for biodegradable and bioresorbable reactive polymers.

2. Development of preparation methods for materials of various designs (polymeric macro- and supraporous blocks, thin layers, solid and hollow nanosized particles).

3. Development of methods for biological functionalization of polymeric materials by covalent and non-covalent conjugation with specific bioligands (“smart” materials or biomimetics).
4. Development of in vitro test methods for biomaterials during operation (biochips, enzyme reactors, nanocontainers for drug delivery, etc.)

Head of the Laboratory: E.G. Korzhikova-Vlakh, Candidate of Chemical Sciences, Assistant Professor

Laboratory № 14 – Polymer Nanomaterials and Composites for Optical Environments

1. Development of synthetic methods for polymeric materials with second- and third-order non-linear optical properties on the basis of linear and branched heterochain polymers with covalently attached chromophore fragments.

2. Synthesis of macromolecular ligands and their complexes with transition and rare earth metals possessing (electro)catalytic activity, photo- and electroluminescent properties.

3. Development of scientific basis for production of intensely luminescent conjugated polymers (particularly, copolyfluorenes) intended for manufacturing high performance LED optoelectronic devices and lighting units.

4. Synthesis of macromolecules with complex architecture (including regular polyimide brushes with side chains of vinyl polymers), study of their molecular characteristics and functional properties.

Head of the Laboratory: A.V. Yakimanskii, Doctor of Chemical Sciences

Laboratory № 15 – Anisotropic and Structured Polymer Systems

1. Development of methods of obtaining binary and ternary supramolecular polymeric structures with non-linear optical properties and photoconductive properties on the basis of calixarene and cyclodextrin complexes of ionic and ionic-hydrophlilic/hydrophobic types (including complexes containing metal ions and fullerene).

2. Synthesis, investigation of structure and properties of thermostable network copolymers obtained by thermo-catalytic transformations of monomer-oligomer systems (rolivsans) in the presence of polyfunctional compounds and composites.

3. Study of mechanism of aniline oxidation polymerization and influence of reaction conditions on polyaniline morphology. Synthesis of polyaniline-based nanostructured composites.

Head of the Laboratory: A.V. Tenkovtsev, Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Assistant Professor

Laboratory № 24 – Biomimetic Polymeric Materials

1. Theoretical modeling of polymer brushes aimed at the search for universal correlations between the architecture of a network and its mechanical properties (elastic modulus, tensile strength) that do not depend on chemical composition of a material.

2. Synthesis of polymer brushes with a rigid backbone (polyester, polyimide, polyfluorene) and flexible hydrophobic or hydrophilic side chains (polycaprolactone, poly(tert-butyl methacrylate), poly(methacrylic acid), poly(oxazoline)s). Search for the methods allowing the formation of sparse regular crosslinks inside these polymers and creation of new elastomers with unique properties.

3. Synthesis of AB and ABA-type copolymers (where B is a polymer brush), in which the nature of a polymer constituting block A will differ significantly from that of side chains of a polymer brush; these materials are intended to produce self-assembling physical networks (the basis of new elastomers). Development of the 3D printing methods for shaping these materials.

4. Determination of molecular masses and molecular mass distributions of the produced polymers by gel permeation chromatography and study of their behavior in solution by light scattering.

5. Producing materials from the synthesized polymers and investigation of their mechanical, thermophysical, and optical properties.

6. Search and optimization of ways for application of the obtained materials in biomedicine, diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals.

Head of the Laboratory: S.S. Sheiko, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences