Fluorescent Self-Healing Elastomers with Triple Dynamic Bonds for 2D/3D Printed Information Encryption.

Abstract

The development of novel optical self-healing materials holds significant importance for applications in anticounterfeiting and information encryption, but remains a formidable challenge. This study presents a fluorescent self-healing material designed for 2D/3D printing anticounterfeiting applications, exhibiting outstanding properties such as high transmittance, excellent mechanical strength, and remarkable self-healing efficiency. The triple dynamic bond networks provide robust mechanical and self-healing capabilities, with the polymer demonstrating a tensile strength of 26.9 MPa, an elongation at break of 1400%, toughness of 149.4 MJ m^-3, and a self-healing efficiency of 97%. When incorporated with core-shell nanoparticles, the polymer forms a fluorescent elastomer capable of triple-mode up/down conversion fluorescence emission. This material can be easily customized via 2D/3D printing to create the desired shapes, and its self-healing property allows for the combination of various configurations, thereby facilitating the encryption of multiple information applications. This study presents an effective protocol for synthesizing fluorescent self-healing materials, further advancing their potentials for use in information encryption and fluorescence-based anti-counterfeiting.