Maiz, Jon; Liu, Guoming; Ruipérez, Fernando; Delbosc, Nicolas; Coulembier, Olivier; Wang, Dujin; Müller, Alejandro J.
How cyclic chain topology can reduce the crystallization rate of poly(3-hexylthiophene) and promote the formation of liquid crystalline phases in comparison with linear analogue chains
We have studied how cyclic topology affects the crystallization and morphology of π-conjugated poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) molecules by comparing linear and cyclic analogues for the first time, with three different chain lengths. We employ a range of experimental techniques including wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS), polarized light optical microscopy (PLOM), differential scanning…
A robust self-healing polyurethane elastomer: From H-bonds and stacking interactions to well-defined microphase morphology
Fan, Cheng-Jie; Huang, Zi-Chun; Li, Bei; Xiao, Wen-Xia; Zheng, En; Yang, Ke-Ke; Wang, Yu-Zhong
Self-healing materials have attracted considerable attention because of their improved safety, lifetime, energy efficiency and environmental impact. Supramolecular interactions have been extensively considered in the field of self-healing materials due to their excellent reversibility and sensitive responsiveness to environmental stimuli. However, development of a polymeric material with good…
Adding Symmetry: Cylindrically Confined Crystallization of Nylon-6
Yu, Shichen; Lai, Ziwei; Jinnai, Hiroshi; Zeng, Xingming; Ageishi, Masaki; Lotz, Bernard; Cheng, Stephen Z. D.; Zheng, Nan; Zhang, Shuailin; Feng, Xueyan; Cao, Yan
It has been known that twin symmetry occurs in small metal crystals and it could lead to ultrahigh mechanical properties. In this research, we first found out the formation of nanoscale twin crystals in polymers under cylindrical confinement. The nylon-6 nanorods are fabricated by infiltrating the melt into cylindrical nanopores…
Thermoreversible crystallization-driven aggregation of diblock copolymer nanoparticles in mineral oil
Derry, Matthew J.; Mykhaylyk, Oleksandr O.; Ryan, Anthony J.; Armes, Steven P.
A poly(behenyl methacrylate)37 (PBeMA37) macromolecular chain transfer agent is utilized for the reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) dispersion polymerization of benzyl methacrylate (BzMA) directly in mineral oil at 90 °C. Polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) occurs under these conditions, yielding a series of sterically-stabilized PBeMA37-PBzMA …
Characterization of poly(butylene succinate)/poly(lactic acid) blends with in-situ sub-micron fibers and intercalation structure manufacturing by volumetric pulsating elongation flow
Tan, Ling-cao; Qu, Jin-ping
In-situ fibrillation and intercalation structure are favoring to improve the properties of polymer blends. In this work poly(butylene succinate)/poly(lactic acid) blends containing such structures have been achieved via volume pulsating elongation flow instead of strong shear. The mechanical properties, crystallization properties and micromorphology of the extruders were well investigated. The…
Effects of Diisocyanate Structure and Disulfide Chain Extender on Hard Segmental Packing and Self-Healing Property of Polyurea Elastomers
Li, Ting; Zheng, Tianze; Han, Jiarui; Liu, Zhanli; Guo, Zhao-Xia; Zhuang, Zhuo; Xu, Jun; Guo, Bao-Hua
Four linear polyurea elastomers synthesized from two different diisocyanates, two different chain extenders and a common aliphatic amine-terminated polyether were used as models to investigate the effects of both diisocyanate structure and aromatic disulfide chain extender on hard segmental packing and self-healing ability. Both direct investigation on hard segments and…
A printed, recyclable, ultra-strong, and ultra-tough graphite structural material
Zhou, Yubing; Chen, Chaoji; Zhu, Shuze; Sui, Chao; Wang, Chao; Kuang, Yudi; Ray, Upamanyu; Liu, Dapeng; Brozena, Alexandra; Leiste, Ulrich H.; Quispe, Nelson; Guo, Hua; Vellore, Azhar; Bruck, Hugh A.; Martini, Ashlie; Foster, Bob; Lou, Jun; Li, Teng; Hu, Liangbing
The high mechanical performance of common structural materials (e.g., metals, alloys, and ceramics) originates from strong primary bonds (i.e., metallic, covalent, ionic) between constituent atoms. However, the large formation energy of primary bonds requires high temperatures in order to process these materials, resulting in significant manufacturing costs and a substantial…
A comparison of non-isocyanate and HDI-based poly(ether urethane): Structure and properties
Shen, Ziyun; Zheng, Liuchun; Li, Chuncheng; Liu, Guoming; Xiao, Yaonan; Wu, Shaohua; Liu, Jiajian; Zhang, Bo
DMC-derived poly (ether urethanes) were prepared via isocyanate-free route. The transurethanization reaction of the non-isocyanate route needs higher temperature as compared with the traditional route. There may be some unknown side reactions under high temperature which lead to changes in chemical structure and subsequent thermal and mechanical properties of the…
Light-induced healing in azobenzene bridged silsesquioxanes
Galante, María J.; Zucchi, Ileana A.; Oyanguren, Patricia A.; Sáiz, Luciana M.
Intrinsic healable polymers are materials capable of repairing itself through its chemical nature, in order to improve stability and durability and to restore the lost functionalities or properties. In this study, azobenzene (AZO) moieties were incorporated into a previously reported bridged silsesquioxane based on the reaction of isocyanatepropyltriethoxysilane (IPTS) with…
Reprocessable Supramolecular Thermoplastic BAB-Type Triblock Copolymer Elastomers with Enhanced Tensile Strength and Toughness via Metal–Ligand Coordination
Wang, Wentao; Zhang, Juan; Jiang, Feng; Wang, Xuehui; Wang, Zhigang
A new strategy was proposed to enhance tensile strength, toughness, and extensibility of BAB-type reprocessable supramolecular triblock copolymer elastomers (STBCPEs) by simply incorporating 1-vinylimidazole (VI) as a minor comonomer to introduce metal–ligand coordinate bonds of minor contents into the soft matrix. Poly(n-butyl acrylate-co-1-vinylimidazole)-b-poly(isobornyl…