{"title":"Light-driven Self-sustained Rolling of Cylinder Hydrogels with Fast and Anisotropic Responses","authors":"Qing-Li Zhu, Han-Lei Cheng, Wei-Xuan Liu, Yin-Bin Xiao, Xin-Lei Wu, Josef Breu, Wei Hong, Zhi-Jian Wang, Qiang Zheng, Zi-Liang Wu","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3196-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3196-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Achieving continuous motions typically requires dynamic external stimuli for cyclic deformation, or crafted geometries with intricate modules to form a self-regulated feedback loop upon static stimulation. It is still a grand challenge to realize self-sustained motion in soft robots subject to unchanging environment, without complex geometry or a control module. In this work, we report soft robots based on an anisotropic cylindrical hydrogel showing self-regulated, continuous rolling motions under constant light irradiation. The robots are animated by mirror-symmetry-breaking induced by photothermal strain gradient. The self-sustained motion is attributed to the fast and reversible deformation of the gel and the autonomous refresh of the irradiated region during the rolling motion. The hydrogel robots can reach a rolling speed of 1.27 mm·s<sup>−1</sup> on a horizonal surface and even climb a ramp of 18° at a speed of 0.57 mm·s<sup>−1</sup> in an aqueous environment. Furthermore, the hydrogel robots can overcome an obstacle, with rolling direction controllable through irradiation angle of the light and local irradiation on selective regions. This work suggests a facile strategy to develop hydrogel robots and may provide unforeseen inspirations for the design of self-regulated soft robots by using other intelligent materials.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"43 4","pages":"548 - 555"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143861254","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jun-Kan Yue, Jing Liang, Qiao-Yu Tan, Man Chen, Jing-Wen Li, Qing Guo, Run-Lai Li, Qiang Fu
{"title":"Scalable and High-Quality Monolayer Graphene Transfer onto Polymer Membranes Assisted by Camphor","authors":"Jun-Kan Yue, Jing Liang, Qiao-Yu Tan, Man Chen, Jing-Wen Li, Qing Guo, Run-Lai Li, Qiang Fu","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3207-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3207-4","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The quest for scalable integration of monolayer graphene into functional composites confronts the bottleneck of high-fidelity transfer onto substrates, crucial for unlocking graphene’s full potential in advanced applications. Addressing this, our research introduces the camphor-assisted transfer (CAT) method, a novel approach that surmounts common issues of residue and structural deformation endemic to existing techniques. Grounded in the sublimation dynamics of camphor, the CAT method achieves a clean, contiguous transfer of centimeter-scale monolayer graphene onto an array of polymer films, including ultra-thin polyethylene films. The resultant ultrathin graphene-polyethylene (gPE) films, characterized by their exceptional transparency and conductivity, reveal the CAT method’s unique ability to preserve the pristine quality of graphene, underscoring its practicality for preparing flexible transparent electrodes by monolayer graphene. In-depth mechanism investigation into the camphor sublimation during CAT has led to a pivotal realization: the porosity of the target polymer substrate is a determinant in achieving high-quality graphene transfer. Ensuring that camphor sublimates initially from the polymer side is crucial to prevent the formation of wrinkles or delamination of graphene. By extensive examination of CAT on a spectrum of commonly used polymer films, including PE, PP, PTFE, PI and PET, we have confirmed this important conclusion. This discovery offers crucial guidance for fabricating monolayer graphene-polymer composite films using methods akin to CAT, underscoring the significance of substrate selection in the transfer process.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 12","pages":"1986 - 2001"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142778285","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Tensile-WAXD Apparatus: An Improved and Accurate System for the In situ Study of Extension-induced Segmental Orientation in Highly Stretched Elastomer","authors":"Xiang Shi","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3201-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3201-x","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>An improved X-ray apparatus that combines tensile testing and X-ray diffraction has been designed and constructed to conduct timeresolved experiments during uniaxial stretching. By utilizing mortise-like clamping jaws and dogbone-shaped specimens, this setup allows for the simultaneous recording of high-quality mechanical responses and 2D diffraction patterns due to the minimization of experimental errors from sample slippage or premature fracture. Furthermore, the local extension ratio can be accurately determined based on thickness variation, and the Hermans' orientation function was demonstrated to be a reliable method with high accuracy to calculate the segmental orientation parameter 〈P<sub>2</sub>〉 in elastomeric samples under high degree of stretching. In summary, this innovative tensile-WAXD instrument has proven to be a promising and powerful technique for investigating the “stress-deformation-segmental orientation” relationship in elastomers with high extensibilities.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 12","pages":"2002 - 2010"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142778495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Chemical Synthesis of Globo H and Mannobiose Glycopolymers and their Immunological Stimulation","authors":"Zhi Zhang, Ce-Ce Xue, Ying-Le Feng, Guo-Song Chen","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3209-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3209-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs) provide a special class of tumor-specific antigens that show promising applications in cancer immunotherapy. However, the weak immunogenicity and structural complexity of TACAs are obstacles to their clinical application. Here, based on a fast and low-cost purification strategy for oligosaccharide synthesis, the synthesis of tumour-associated carbohydrate antigens Globo H and mannobiose which resembles repeat unit of mannan was achieved. To enhance the immunogenicity and multivalent effect, Globo H and mannobiose were covalently attached to degradable polymer backbones. 2D spindle-like lamellar micelle and globular micelle were obtained from glycopolymer through a solvent-exchange method of self-assembly. The glyconanoparticle showed good biocompatibility and degradability. Immunological functions of these glyconanoparticles such as stimulation of BMDC to cause upregulation of inflammatory factors were preliminarily explored.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 11","pages":"1661 - 1667"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142600544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zhen Wu, Kai-Feng Liao, Le-Ping Xiao, Shi-Jie Zhong, Min Gong, Guo-Jie Wang
{"title":"Spiropyran-Containing Reusable and Wearable All-in-One Ultraviolet Monitoring and Shielding Textiles for Sun Protection","authors":"Zhen Wu, Kai-Feng Liao, Le-Ping Xiao, Shi-Jie Zhong, Min Gong, Guo-Jie Wang","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3188-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3188-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Moderate ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunlight is essential for human health, but overexposure to UV rays can cause serious adverse effects. It is important to detect UV radiation from sunlight in time to prevent damage from excessive exposure. Here, a ready-to-use, easy-to-interpret, inexpensive, reusable, and wearable all-in-one UV monitoring and shielding sensor SP-TPE@PU textile has been developed. The SP-TPE@PU textiles are constructed by photochromic molecule SP-TPE and commercial polymer polyurethane (PU) through electrospinning. The SP-TPE molecule acts as the sensor component, and PU contributes to high flexibility. The SP-TPE@PU textiles show remarkable durability (against repeated twisting, curling, bending deformations, and water immersion) and good permeability, making them durable and breathable wearable materials. When exposed to sunlight, the SP-TPE@PU textiles rapidly exhibit significant color changes due to the efficient isomerization of SP-TPE, serving as an early warning and monitoring of UV radiation. In addition, the SP-TPE@PU textiles can revert to the initial state with visible light irradiation for reuse. Furthermore, the SP-TPE@PU textiles possess excellent UV shielding ability, contributing to human body protection. Simple and easy operation, significant and reversible color changes, good breathability and mechanical properties make SP-TPE@PU textiles reusable and wearable all-in-one UV monitoring and shielding sensors.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 12","pages":"1933 - 1940"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142778442","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Crosslinked Natural Rubber and Styrene Butadiene Rubber Blends/Carbon Black Composites for Self-healable and Energy-saved Applications","authors":"Ariya Julbust, Kwanchai Buaksuntear, Supitta Suethao, Phillip Kohl, Youli Li, Wirasak Smitthipong","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3208-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3208-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Crosslinking natural rubber (NR) and styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) composites with carbon black (CB) have been utilized in the tire tread industry. A sulfur-based lightly crosslinker can potentially enhance the self-healing capabilities of rubber. Moreover, the rubber composites were studied for non-covalent interactions between the benzene rings of SBR and CB. In this research, rubber samples were prepared, and their structure was investigated using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and Raman spectroscopy. The red shift in Raman spectroscopy confirmed non-covalent interaction or hydrophobic interaction between SBR and CB in NR/SBR composites exposed to CB due to environmental change. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermograms showed that NR and SBR were incompatible. Additionally, the mechanical properties of these rubber blends were enhanced as the proportion of NR increased. The maximum self-healing performance reached 40% for the formulation containing 25 phr NR and 75 phr SBR, which also saved energy with low chain end movements. Therefore, these composites could be utilized as a semi-empirical model for studying crosslinked rubber blends, specifically in the rubber tire industry.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 11","pages":"1835 - 1844"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142600700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Insight into the Solution Self-Assembly of Amphiphilic Asymmetric Brush Copolymers via Computer Simulations","authors":"Wei-Ting Zeng, Wei-Sheng Feng, Xing Zhang, Yuan Yao, Bin-Bin Xu, Shao-Liang Lin","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3198-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3198-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Amphiphilic asymmetric brush copolymers (AABCs) possess unique self-assembly behaviors owing to their asymmetric brush architecture and multiple functionalities of multicomponent side chains. However, the synthesis of AABCs presents challenges, which greatly limits the exploration of their self-assembly behaviors. In this work, we employed dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations to investigate the self-assembly behaviors of AABCs in selective solution. By varying the copolymer concentration and structure, we conducted the self-assembly phase diagrams of AABCs, revealing complex morphologies such as channelized micelles with one or more solvophilic channels. Moreover, the number, surface area, and one-dimensional density distribution of the channelized micelles were calculated to demonstrate the internal structure and morphological transformation during the self-assembly process. Our findings indicate that the morphology of the internal solvophilic channels is greatly influenced by the copolymer structure, concentration, and interaction parameters between the different side chains. The simulation results are consistent with available experimental observations, which can offer theoretical insights into the self-assembly of AABCs.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"43 1","pages":"132 - 140"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142995830","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Regulation of Mechanical Properties of Conductive Polymer Composites","authors":"Ling Zhu, Shuai Chen, Meng Zhou, Si-Ying An, Li-Shan Liang, You-Liang Shen, Ze-Xu Xue","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3203-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3203-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Conductive polymer composites (CPCs) are widely used in the field of organic electronics as the material basis of high-performance devices, due to their obvious advantages including electrical conductivity, lightness, processability and so on. Research on CPCs has focused on the enhancement of their electrical features and the exploration of their application prospects from conventional fields to heated emerging areas like flexible, stretchable, wearable, biological and biomedical electronics, where their mechanical properties are quite critical to determine their practical device performances. Also, a main challenge to ensure their safety and reliability is on the synergistic enhancement of their electrical behavior and mechanical properties. Herein, we systematically reviews the research progress of CPCs with different conductive fillers (metals and their oxides, carbon-based materials, intrinsically conductive polymers, MXenes, <i>etc.</i>) relying on rich material forms (hydrogel, aerogel, fiber, film, elastomer, <i>etc.</i>) in terms of mechanical property regulation strategies, mainly relying on optimized composite material systems and processing techniques. A summary and prospective overview of current issues and future developments in this field also has been presented.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 12","pages":"1855 - 1880"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142265637","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Comparative Study of Intrachain versus Interchain Cross-linking on the Mechanical, Thermal and Dielectric Properties of Low-k Polyimide","authors":"Wan-Jing Zhao, Yi-Zhang Tong, Pei-Pei Zeng, Yang-Sheng Zhou, Xian-Wu Cao, Wei Wu","doi":"10.1007/s10118-024-3186-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10118-024-3186-5","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Polyimide (PI) is widely used in high-frequency communication technology due to its exceptional comprehensive properties. However, traditional PI has a relatively elevated dielectric constant and dielectric loss. Herein, the different cross-linked structures were introduced in PI matrix and conducted a detailed discussion on the influence of cross-linking agent content and cross-linking structure type on the overall performance of PI films. In comparison to the dielectric constant of 2.9 of neat PI, PI with an interchain cross-linking structure containing 2 wt% 1,3,5-tris(4-aminophenyl)benzene (TAPB) (interchain-PI-2) exhibited the reduced dielectric constant of 2.55 at 1 MHz. The PI films with intrachain cross-linking structure containing 2 wt% TAPB (intrachain-PI-2) exhibited the lowest dielectric constant of 2.35 and the minimum dielectric loss of 0.0075 at 1 MHz. It was due to the more entanglement junctions of intrachain-PI resulting in decreased carrier transport. The thermal expansion coefficients of both interchain-PI and intrachain-PI films were effectively reduced. Moreover, in contrast to interchain-PI films, the intrachain-PI films maintained colorlessness and transparency as the cross-linking agent content increased. This work compared the effects of two different cross-linked structures on the performance of PI films and provided a feasible way to obtain low-<i>k</i> PI films with excellent comprehensive performance for 5G applications.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":517,"journal":{"name":"Chinese Journal of Polymer Science","volume":"42 11","pages":"1824 - 1834"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142600699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}