Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Recent work has demonstrated that temporary crosslinks in polymer networks generated by chemical “fuels” afford materials with large, transient changes in their mechanical properties. This can be accomplished in carboxylic‐acid‐functionalized polymer hydrogels using carbodiimides, which generate anhydride crosslinks with lifetimes on the order of minutes to hours. Here, the impact of the polymer network architecture on the mechanical properties of transiently crosslinked materials was explored. Single networks (SNs) were compared to interpenetrated networks (IPNs). Notably, semi‐IPN precursors that give IPNs on treatment with carbodiimide give much higher fracture energies (i.e., resistance to fracture) and superior resistance to compressive strain compared to other network architectures. A precursor semi‐IPN material featuring acrylic acid in only the free polymer chains yields, on treatment with carbodiimide, an IPN with a fracture energy of 2400 J/m2, a fourfold increase compared to an analogous semi‐IPN precursor that yields a SN. This resistance to fracture enables the formation of macroscopic complex cut patterns, even at high strain, underscoring the pivotal role of polymer architecture in mechanical performance.
Source: Angewandte Chemie
Authors: Chamoni W. H. Rajawasam, Corvo Tran, Jessica L. Sparks, William H. Krueger, C. Scott Hartley, Dominik Konkolewicz
Institution: Miami University
Language: English
Subfield: Polymers and Plastics
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,250
Awards: G2896412271, G3745203787, G4448408980, DISSIPATIVE ASSEMBLY OF CARBOXYLIC ACID ANHYDRIDES FOR NONEQUILIBRIUM SYSTEMS CHEMISTRY, G7196358480, MRI: Acquisition of a 400 MHz Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectrometer at Miami University, REU Site: Research Experience for Undergraduates in Chemistry and Biochemistry at Miami University, G8822368782, G8925246413
OpenAlex ID: W4393069200