Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT There is usually a mutual trade-off between thermodynamic stability, kinetic activity and external field responsiveness in polymer chemistry. Here, we report a Cu(II)-coordinated benzoquinone dioxime–carbamate unit (Cu–BQDU) that resolves this challenge in polymers. Through an inductive effect, coordination bonds polarize hydrogen bonds, enhancing their strength to the highest reported value for carbamate–carbamate segments in hydrogen bonding (∼5.6 kcal/mol). The resulting polymer exhibits exceptional thermodynamic stability and achieves a record-high toughness of 236.0 MJ/m3 among intrinsic photothermal elastomers. Additionally, the coordination bond extends the molecular conjugation length, optimizing the geometric alignment of π–π interactions to enhance photothermal conversion efficiency. This effect synergizes with Cu(II)-catalysed carbamate dynamics, boosting near-infrared-light-driven photothermal healing efficiency by 92.9%. This work provides multiple new molecular design principles of polymers.
Source: National Science Review
DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwaf521
Authors: Zekai Wu, Yuhui Jin, Yingqian Li, Guangchen Liu, Zhengwei You
Institution: Donghua University
Language: English
Subfield: Polymers and Plastics
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,000
OpenAlex ID: W4416764223