2005 Volume 62 Issue 10 Pages 458-466
The NMR imaging microscopy is a very useful means for obtaining non-destructively μm-scale spatial information on probe molecules in bulk matter. Using the 1H chemical shift NMR imaging microscopy, we successfully determined the spatial distribution of paramagnetic metal ions in polymer gel. Results showed that the chemical shift NMR imaging microscopy is a useful means for elucidating the spatial heterogeneous polymer gel network system. The three-dimensional NMR microscopy showed that a hundred long channel cavities with, μm-scale diameters are formed along the direction parallel to α-helix axis in the highly-oriented polypeptide gels. Further, the phase-separated structure of the poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) /poly (styrene) (PS) blends at the order of several tens of μm has been reasonably elucidated by 3D NMR microscopy. Thus, 3D NMR microscopy is a very useful means for characterizing 3D structure of phase-separated polymer blends, along with X-ray microscopy.
