Polymeric Complex Nanoparticles Enable the Fabrication of Mechanically Superstrong and Recyclable Poly(aryl ether sulfone)-based Polymer Composites

Abstract

It is a long-term pursuit, and also, a challenge to significantly improve the mechanical strength of thermoplastic polymers using readily dispersed polymers as nanofillers. In this study, we demonstrated that in situ formed carboxylic acid-functionalized poly(aryl ether sulfone) (PAES-COOH)/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVPON) complex nanoparticles can significantly enhance the mechanical strength of PAES-COOH by mixing PAES-COOH with a small fraction of PVPON. The PAES-COOH/PVPON 10% composite, which contained ∼10 wt % PVPON, exhibited a tensile strength of ∼104.8 MPa and Young's modulus of ∼932.2 MPa, which were ∼2.0 and ∼1.7 times higher than those of the PAES-COOH, respectively. The PAES-COOH/PVPON nanoparticles which were uniformly dispersed in PAES-COOH matrices and had strong hydrogen-bonding interactions with PAES-COOH, served as nanofillers to reinforce the mechanical strength of the PAES-COOH. The PAES-COOH/PVPON 10% composites possessed excellent solvent-assisted healability, and the fractured composites could be healed to restore their original mechanical strength. Meanwhile, the PAES-COOH/PVPON 10% composites could be recycled multiple times, and yet retained their shape integration and their original mechanical strength.

Multi-recyclable Shape Memory Supramolecular Polyurea with Long Cycle Life and Superior Stability

“…Generally, SMPs are divided into physically cross-linked SMPs and chemically cross-linked SMPs based on the structure of cross-linked networks. , Physically cross-linked SMPs formed through crystallization or linked via noncovalent bonds possess remarkable reprocessability, − but the reversibility of physical cross-links also generates unstable networks, which result in inferior mechanical strength and lower solvent resistance. Furthermore, incomplete shape recovery and unsatisfactory durability of physically cross-linked SMPs would decrease their shape memory performance during the service life. − In comparison with physically cross-linked SMPs, chemically cross-linked SMPs exhibit various unique advantages, including outstanding solvent resistance, high shape recovery rate, quick response rate, and long cycle life. ,, However, the covalently cross-linked networks make them difficult to be reprocessed and reshaped.…”

Polymeric materials reinforced by noncovalent aggregates of polymer chains

“…[58][59][60][61] Recently, our group has developed various healable and/or recyclable plastics with extraordinary mechanical performances via noncovalent crosslinking of polymers. [46][47][48][49][50] The noncovalent aggregation of polymer chains leads to the in situ formation of nanoparticles/clusters as additional crosslinking domains and "hard" nanofillers to significantly reinforce the resultant plastic materials. This mechanism has also been found in some reports from other groups for the fabrication of plastic materials with enhanced mechanical performances.…”

“…The resultant PAA-PVPON composites exhibit featureless nanostructures without nanoparticles observed under TEM, while the as-obtained materials are quite brittle with much inferior mechanical performances. Thanks to the reversibility of the H-bonds between PAA and PVPON, the mechanically super-strong PAA 0.98 -PVPON 1 composite is self-healable to restore its original [48] with permission. Copyright 2019 Chinese Chemical Society mechanical performance, even after break, after 11 h of immersion in water of ∼45 • C followed by incubation in air for ∼18 h. (Figure 2F).…”

“…[72][73][74][75][76] Aiming at the reinforcement of polysulfones, a family of tough thermoplastics with high thermostability, our group has developed an effective strategy by complexing carboxylic acid-functionalized poly(aryl ether sulfone) (PAES-COOH) with a small fraction of PVPON. [48] PAES-COOH/PVPON x% composites (x%, the mass fraction of PVPON) were fabricated by mixing the dimethylformamide (DMF) solutions of PAES-COOH and PVPON, followed by casting the mixtures onto solid substrates and evaporation of the solvent (Figure 2K,L). Due to the H-bonding interactions between PAES-COOH and PVPON, mixing PAES-COOH with ∼10 wt% of PVPON in DMF generates PAES-COOH/PVPON complexes that are well dispersed in the DMF solution of PAES-COOH, because PAES-COOH is highly excessive compared to PVPON.…”

“…Inspired by the reinforcement effect of noncovalent aggregates in natural materials, our group has recently developed a series of high-performance noncovalently crosslinked polymeric materials involving in situ formed noncovalent aggregates of polymer chains. [46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56] We have systematically investigated the correlation between the characteristics of the noncovalent aggregates and the mechanical properties of the as-developed polymeric materials. Accordingly, the composition, structure, and dispersion of the aggregates can be reasonably designed and tailored to significantly enhance the mechanical properties of the polymeric materials, in terms of strength, stiffness, toughness and/or elasticity (Figure 1).…”