Ion exchange membranes obtainable by curing a composition comprising: (a) a curable monomer comprising at least one anionic or cationic group; (b) a photoinitiator which has an absorption maximum at a wavelength longer than 380 nm when measured in one or more of the following solvents at a temperature of 23° C.: water, ethanol and toluene; (c) at least one co-initiator; and optionally (d) optionally a curable monomer which is free from anionic and cationic groups; wherein at least one of the curable monomers present in the composition comprises an aromatic group.

A method for manufacturing a tire rubber composition includes kneading a rubber component, a silane coupling agent and a silica having a BET specific surface area of 210 m.sup.2/g or more, adding a vulcanization accelerator to a first kneaded material including the rubber component, silane coupling agent and silica, kneading a first resulting mixture including the rubber component, silane coupling agent, silica and vulcanization accelerator such that a second kneaded material including the rubber component, silane coupling agent, silica and vulcanization accelerator is obtained, adding a vulcanization agent to the second kneaded material including the rubber component, silane coupling agent, silica and vulcanization accelerator, and kneading a second resulting mixture including the rubber component, silane coupling agent, silica, vulcanization accelerator and vulcanization agent. The first kneaded material has a pH of 6.5 or less, and the second kneaded material has a pH of 8.0 or more.

A proton exchange solid support includes a porous polymer network including a polymer. The polymer includes a tetravalent boron-based acid group in a side chain of the polymer, and the tetravalent boron-based acid group includes a boron atom having a negative formal charge. A cation is ionically linked to the boron atom.

A composite powder includes a core particle comprising a sulfonated polyester matrix and a plurality of silver nanoparticles dispersed within the matrix, and a shell polymer disposed about the core particle, and methods of making thereof. Various articles can be manufactured from such composite powders.

A transparent plate includes a transparent substrate and an antifouling layer. A surface of the transparent substrate includes a fine projecting and recessed structure with a surface roughness of 2.0-100 nm. The antifouling layer includes fluorine, and at least a part of the antifouling layer is formed on a position of the fine projecting and recessed structure. A haze value of the transparent plate at the position of the fine projecting and recessed structure is 2% or less. A value of X defined by (S.sub.1—S.sub.2)/(S.sub.3—S.sub.2) is 0.5 or more, where S.sub.1, S.sub.2 and S.sub.3 are F—Kα line strengths of the transparent plate at the position of the fine projecting and recessed structure, a reference glass plate that does not include fluorine, and a reference aluminosilicate glass plate that includes fluorine of 2 wt %, respectively, and S.sub.1, S.sub.2 and S.sub.3 are measured by a fluorescent X-ray measurement device.

A proton exchange solid support includes a first solid support including a polymer, a second solid support, and a tetravalent boron-based acid group that links the first solid support to the second solid support.

A biocompatible, covalently cross-linked, polymer that is obtained by reacting an electrophilically activated polyoxazoline (EL-PDX) with a nucleophilic cross-linking agent is disclosed. The EL-PDX comprises m electrophilic groups; and the nucleophilic cross-linking agent comprises n nucleophilic groups, wherein the m electrophilic groups are capable of reacting with the n nucleophilic groups to form covalent bonds; wherein m≧2, n≧2 and m+n≧5; wherein at least one of the m electrophilic groups is a pendant electrophilic group and/or wherein m≧3; and wherein the EL-PDX comprises an excess amount of electrophilic groups relative to the amount of nucleophilic groups contained in the nucleophilic cross-linking agent. Biocompatible medical products and kits comprising the cross-linked PDX-polymers are also disclosed.

The present invention relates to a method for preparing a protein cage which comprises: a 1.sup.st step of preparing an amphiphilic polymer comprising a 1.sup.st hydrophobic polymer and a 1.sup.st hydrophilic functional group; a 2.sup.nd step of preparing a hydrophilic protein comprising a 2.sup.nd functional group binding to the 1.sup.st functional group; a 3.sup.rd step of forming an amphiphilic polymer-protein hybrid by the binding of the 1.sup.st functional group and the 2.sup.nd functional group, and forming core-shell structured particles comprising a protein shell and an amphiphilic polymer core by the self-assembly of the amphiphilic polymer in a hydrophilic solvent; and a fourth step of removing some or all of the hydrophobic polymer of the core part from the core-shell structured particles.

Embodiments for a crosslinked alkoxysilyl polynorbornene homopolymer and methods of making crosslinked alkoxysilyl polynorbornene homopolymer are provided, where the method comprises polymerizing through addition polymerization or ring opening metathesis polymerization a norbornene monomer comprising an alkoxysilyl moiety in the presence of a catalyst to produce an alkoxysilyl modified polynorbornene homopolymer, and producing a crosslinked alkoxysilyl polynorbornene homopolymer through sol-gel initiated crosslinking of the alkoxysilyl modified polynorbornene homopolymer at ambient conditions, or acid-catalyzed conditions.

A resin composition or the like may exhibit high vibration damping properties even at a relatively high temperature, have good moldability, and have excellent impact resistance. The resin composition contains a thermoplastic resin (A), a thermoplastic resin (B), and a polar resin (C), wherein the resin composition satisfies (1) to (3): (1) the thermoplastic resin (B) has at least one of a reactive functional group and a monomer unit containing a hetero atom; (2) the thermoplastic resin (A) and the thermoplastic resin (B) are different types of resins; (3) with respect to the total mass of the resin composition, the content of the thermoplastic resin (A) is 1 to 30% by mass, the content of the thermoplastic resin (B) is 1 to 30% by mass, and the content of the polar resin (C) is 40 to 98% by mass.