We developed a method for fabricating anisotropic monodisperse silicon dioxide (SiO2) patchy microspheres. The protocol utilizes a modified microcontact printing (µCP) technique, employing a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer with a regularly grooved surface topography as a stamp. The stamp’s microscale channels create a confined environment for the SiO2 microspheres, as they match the particle dimensions (~4 µm). Our solid-phase µCP routine allows for the transfer of functional trialkoxysilanes from the elastomer stamp to the particles exclusively at their contact faces. By applying a second stamp to the exposed side of the particles, a fourth patch with different chemical information is added. This fabrication process, compatible with various follow-up chemistries, adds patches with adjustable characteristics. The method is suitable to fabricate particles possessing a C4v and C2v symmetry. Importantly, the protocol is easily adaptable to other particle dimensions and surface chemistries, indicating significant potential in the field of anisotropically functionalized spherical colloids.

Presented study highlights the application of gradient radical polymerization in developing polymer-coated magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) for Pickering emulsions. Pickering emulsions are stabilized by solid particles adsorbed at the oil-water interface, offering superior stability compared to conventional surfactant-stabilized emulsions while reducing environmental impact[1,2]. Pickering Interfacial Catalysts (PIC) extend this concept by incorporating catalytic functionalities into the stabilizing particles, enabling efficient interfacial reactions in biphasic systems[3].
Using surface-initiated reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (SI-RAFT) polymerization the amphiphilic polymeric shell on iron oxide nanoparticles was construted. This shell contains hydrophobic poly(butyl acrylate) and hydrophilic poly(hydroxyethyl acrylate) blocks, enabling amphiphilic properties. The gradient polymerization approach allowed precise control over the polymer shell structure, optimizing the stability and performance of Pickering emulsions [4,5].
The resulting nanoparticles demonstrated the ability to stabilize oil-in-water emulsions without conventional surfactants. Characterization by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) confirmed the successful synthesis of gradient polymer-coated MNPs and their nanoscale structure.
Additionally, prepared emulsions provided a robust platform for interfacial applications, including catalysis. The polymeric shell enabled the deposition of palladium nanoparticles (PdNPs), to form the Pickering catalyst active in Suzuki-Myiaura reaction performed in water. This research demonstrates how gradient polymerization can be leveraged to enhance Pickering emulsions, paving the way for environmentally friendly and versatile applications in catalysis.
Analyses were performed in Centre of Syntesis and Analisys BioNanoTechno of University of Bialystok.
The research were financed by National Science Centre Poland grant no. 2016/21/N/ST5/01316.

Polyurethane (PU) foams have long been optimized for thermal insulation, supporting an annual production of billions of tons. However, growing health and environmental concerns demand not only enhanced insulation performance but also safer formulations. In this context, isocyanate-free PU foams have garnered significant interest from both industry and academia.[1] Despite this, the exploration of alternative chemistries to traditional PU for producing rigid thermal insulation foams remains relatively limited, leaving a promising avenue for further innovation.[2, 3]
This study shows the potential of Aza-Michael reaction for producing highly crosslinked, low-density polymer foams as alternatives to conventional PU foams for thermal insulation. The exothermic crosslinking facilitates the use of physical blowing agents (PBA), creating foam through gas bubble generation, as summarized in Figure. The challenge lies in tuning the reaction kinetics to control the exothermicity, ensuring that matrix solidification and foam blowing are synchronized to achieve the desired foam properties. This is done through systematic variation of the reactive formulation.
Using double-syringe mixing technique, influence of air bubbles in the premix on cell density is elucidated, emphasizing the critical and synergistic interplay between foaming process and formulation in shaping the final foam properties. The influence of surface-active agents is also systematically examined, revealing their critical role in controlling the foam morphology. We show that homogeneous, closed-cell, and low-density foams with cell sizes of a few hundred micrometers can be obtained. Further refinements in cell size offer pathways to enhance insulation performance, making these foams a promising candidate for next-generation thermal insulation materials.

Lead halide perovskite nanocrystals (LHP-NCs) incorporated within polymer matrices have emerged as promising materials for various applications, including energy harvesting, artificial lighting, displays, as well as bright scintillators. However, challenges persist in achieving high-quality nanocomposites due to low monomer conversion yields, restricted LHP-NC loadings, and difficulty in maintaining NC integrity post-polymerization.1 We present a novel protocol for synthesizing LHP-NCs/poly(methyl methacrylate) nanocomposites in a single step via the NC-initiated photoinduced electron transfer-reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (PET-RAFT) method.2 Polymerization initiation mediated by NC surfaces under blue light enables the fabrication of homogeneous nanocomposites with NC loadings up to 7% w/w and ~90% monomer conversion even in the presence of oxygen. This process preserves the optical quality of the NCs and passivates NC surface defects, resulting in nanocomposites exhibiting near unity luminescence efficiencies. The potential of this approach for producing highly loaded nanocomposites for radiation detection is validated by radioluminescence measurements showing light yield values of 6000 ph/MeV and fast scintillation dynamics with effective lifetime of 490 ps, showing promise for time-of-flight radiometry.

Magnetorheological elastomers (MREs) are composed of a non-magnetic matrix and a magnetic filler. They have the ability to reversibly tune their mechanical properties when an external magnetic field is applied, which renders them “smart” materials. Their tunable flexibility enables their application in various fields, such as soft electronics, robotics, dampers, and shock absorbers. Within the MREs, the interactions between the magnetic particles and the matrix are not well understood yet. They are, however, crucial especially for the processing or recycling of the MREs. The current study investigates the particle/matrix interactions in the MREs composed of various commercial thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) and carbonyl iron (CI) microparticles. During their molten-state processing, the CI particles are speculated to react with the polymer chains due to the presence of hydroxyl groups on their surface. Such interactions are mainly studied through the means of rheology, microscopy techniques, and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) to investigate their evolution and possibly reveal the degradation of the matrix. The results indicate that when these MREs are going through thermo-mechanical processing, radicals are generated from the matrix as a result of chain scission, and consequently, they react with the hydroxyl groups, forming a covalently bonded network, signified by the increasing storage modulus. These findings are fundamental for the development of recycled and anisotropic MREs with the TPE matrix fabricated using molten-state technologies.

Polypyrrole (PPy) is one of the most known conducting polymers due to its high electrical conductivity, easy preparation and excellent environmental stability. The properties of PPy, important for various practical applications can be easily modified and improved during the synthesis. The addition of organic dyes into pyrrole chemical or electrochemical polymerization has been found to significantly improve its conductivity, electrochemical performance and modify the morphology [1–4]. Recently the conductivity of PPy was increased from unit S cm–1 to 60 S cm−1 or 175 S cm–1 by addition of organic dye, Acid Blue 25 [1] or safranine [2] to the polymerization medium, respectively, with simultaneous conversion of the morphology from globular one to 1-D nanostructures. This principle has been also applied to electrochemical preparation of thin films. Due to improved conductivity, such films used as electrode materials exhibit increase areal capacitance and better cycling stability [3–4] making them undoubtedly propitious materials for fabrication of electrodes for supercapacitors.

Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank the Czech Science Foundation (25-15541S) for the financial support.