Effect of poly(vinyl alcohol)-g-poly(lactic acid) on the oxygen barrier performance of poly(lactic acid)-based film.

In order to improve the oxygen barrier performance of poly(lactic acid) (PLA), a simple and economical melt blending method was chosen and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH) with excellent oxygen barrier was used as the reinforcing phase to meet high oxygen needs. To improve compatibility, PLA was grafted onto PVOH through L-LA ring opening polymerization to get poly(vinyl alcohol)-graft-poly(lactic acid) (PVOH-g-PLA). The films with high oxygen barrier performance were prepared by blending PLA with PVOH-g-PLA.

Regulating Cross-Linking Structure and Dispersion of Core-Shell-Rubber Particles in Polyurethane Composite to Achieve Excellent Mechanical Properties for Structural Adhesive Application.

Structural adhesives are bonding materials that can quickly join structures with components and repair cracks. However, thermosetting polyurethane structural adhesives suffer from disadvantages such as insufficient toughness, poor aging resistance, and long curing time, which greatly limit their practical application. Herein, a polyurethane (PU) composite with excellent mechanical properties was prepared successfully via regulating the cross-linking structure and the dispersion of core-shell-rubber (CSR) particles.

Toward Sustainable Poly(lactic acid)/Poly(propylene carbonate) Blend Films with Balanced Mechanical Properties, High Optical Transmittance, and Gas Barrier Performance via Reactive Compatibilization and Biaxial Stretching.

Sustainable poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) blends were compatibilized by the environmentally friendly epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) through the chemical reaction of epoxy functional groups on ESO with the terminated carboxyl and hydroxyl groups of PLA/PPC. The compatibilization effect of ESO was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, rheological property testing, differential scanning calorimetry, and morphological observations. It was revealed that the molecular chain entanglement between PLA and PPC was significantly enhanced and the dispersed PPC phase size was decreased, which endowed the blend with high viscosity modulus, low tan δ, and great stretchability, especially for the blend containing 1.

Polymer-MOF Network Enabling Ultrathin Coating for Post-Combustion Carbon Capture.

Permeance-selectivity trade-off and high temperature resilience are key challenges in development of membranes for post-combustion carbon capture. While mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) consisting of polymers and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) offer the potential to address the challenges, they are limited by the low loading of MOFs in the thin film layer. Herein, we propose an inverse synthesis strategy to form polymer-MOF networks by copolymerizing monomers with functionalized UiO-66 nanoparticles.

A hyaluronic acid-modified cyclodextrin self-assembly system for the delivery of β-carotene in the treatment of dry eye disease.

Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial ocular disease, the core mechanism of which is the tear film instability caused by ocular oxidative stress damage and inflammation. Although various pharmaceutical agents are available for DED treatment, their effectiveness is often limited by the eyes' unique biological barriers, and the long-term use of steroid hormones can lead to several adverse effects. This study reported a nano-supramolecular delivery system consisting of a polycyclodextrin (PCD), hyaluronic acid (HA) and the natural compound β-carotene (BC) for the DED treatment.

A universal strategy to design recyclable photocrosslinked networks via architecting lignin-derived spiro diacetal trigger.

Precise transformation of renewable resources into high-performance photo-crosslinked resins with degradability remains a daunting challenge. In this work, we employed a renewable bioresource, lignin-derived vanillin, to construct a rigid spiro diacetal trigger, which was further coupled with thermosetting epoxy segments to develop three high-performance functionalized polymers. Several high-performance photosensitive materials with alkali-dissolving patterning and recyclable were innovatively engineered based on these polymers.

Biomimetic Structural Hydrogels Reinforced by Gradient Twisted Plywood Architectures.

Naturally structural hydrogels such as crustacean exoskeletons possess a remarkable combination of seemingly contradictory properties: high strength, modulus, and toughness coupled with exceptional fatigue resistance, owing to their hierarchical structures across multiple length scales. However, replicating these unique mechanical properties in synthetic hydrogels remains a significant challenge. This work presents a synergistic approach for constructing hierarchical structural hydrogels by employing cholesteric liquid crystal self-assembly followed by nanocrystalline engineering.

Preparation and Performance of PBAT/PLA/CaCO Composites via Solid-State Shear Milling Technology.

Replacing traditional disposable, non-biodegradable plastic packaging with biodegradable plastic packaging is one of the key approaches to address the issue of "white pollution". PBAT/PLA/inorganic filler composites are widely utilized as a biodegradable material, commonly employed in the field of packaging films. However, the poor dispersion of inorganic fillers in the polymer matrix and the limited compatibility between PBAT and PLA have led to inferior mechanical properties and elevated costs.

Reversible Adhesive Film with Ultralow Dielectric Loss in High Frequency via Surface Anchoring of Catechol.

Debonding of the dielectric adhesive material will make the high-frequency communication equipment unusable, leading to resource wasting and electronic waste. Reversible adhesive is an ideal strategy to realize the reuse of debonding devices, but the low dielectric loss requirement of the dielectric adhesive materials in high-frequency devices limits its development. Here, the surface anchoring design of catechol was proposed to prepare a reversible adhesive film with ultralow dielectric loss in high frequency.

Monomer Trapping Synthesis Toward Dynamic Nanoconfinement Self-healing Eutectogels for Strain Sensing.

The rapid advancement in attractive platforms such as biomedicine and human-machine interaction has generated urgent demands for intelligent materials with high strength, flexibility, and self-healing capabilities. However, existing self-healing ability materials are challenged by a trade-off between high strength, low elastic modulus, and healing ability due to the inherent low strength of noncovalent bonding. Here, drawing inspiration from human fibroblasts, a monomer trapping synthesis strategy is presented based on the dissociation and reconfiguration in amphiphilic ionic restrictors (7000-times volume monomer trapping) to develop a eutectogel.

Mechanism study of Dual-Emission ratiometric fluorescent pH-Sensitive carbon quantum dots and its application on mornitoring enzymatic catalysis.

Carbon dots (CQD) have received significant attention as a novel ratiometric fluorescent pH nanoprobe, owing to their favorable optical properties and excellent biocompatibility. Despite their appealing features, the precise mechanism behind the pH-sensitive photoluminescence of CQDs remains to be fully understood. This study endeavors to unravel the mechanism underlying the pH-responsive ratiometric fluorescence in dual-emission CQDs, synthesized through a one-step hydrothermal method using o-phenylenediamine and oxalic acid as precursors.

Fabrication of high performance poly(vinyl alcohol)/straw composite film used for package via melt casting and biaxial stretching.

A high performance poly(vinyl alcohol)/straw (PVA/SP) composite film for package was fabricated in this study by using thermal processing technology of PVA established in our research group and biaxial stretching technology. The introduction of SP disrupted the original hydrogen bonds in modified PVA by forming new hydrogen bonds with the hydroxyl groups of each component in modified system, thus promoting the stable melt casting of PVA/SP composites and also endowing the obtained PVA/SP precursor sheets with good drawability. Upon biaxial stretching, SP reinforced the crystalline structure and orientation of PVA through their hydrogen bonds with PVA, improving the mechanical strength, crystallinity and thermal stability of PVA/SP films.

Constructing Heterostructured MWCNT-BN Hybrid Fillers in Electrospun TPU Films to Achieve Superior Thermal Conductivity and Electrical Insulation Properties.

The development of thermally conductive polymer/boron nitride (BN) composites with excellent electrically insulating properties is urgently demanded for electronic devices. However, the method of constructing an efficient thermally conductive network is still challenging. In the present work, heterostructured multi-walled carbon nanotube-boron nitride (MWCNT-BN) hybrids were easily prepared using an electrostatic self-assembly method.

Stretching Aligned Hydrogen Bonding Network to Evoke Mechanically Robust and High-Energy-Density P(VDF-HFP) Dielectric Film Capacitors.

Polymer-based dielectric film capacitors are essential energy storage components in electronic and power systems due to their ultrahigh power density and ultra-fast charge storage/release capability. Nonetheless, their relatively low energy density does not fully meet the requirements of power electronics and pulsed power systems. Herein, a scalable composite dielectric film based on a ferroelectric polymer with edge hydroxylated boron nitride nanosheets (BNNS-OH) is fabricated via the construction of a hydrogen bonding network and stretching orientation strategy.

Functional thermoelectric composite endows cellulose paper with superior fire safety.

Due to intrinsic defect of fire hazard security, improving the flame retardant capacity of paper is still insufficient in case of precombustion. Herein, we integrate the flame retardant with flame detection performance on the surface of paper, the restricts of graphene oxide (GO) are overcome between high thermoelectric performance and flexibility. A flexible lamellar thermoelectric composite (GO-LA-HP) is constructed through the co-assembly of GO, ascorbic acid (LA), and phenoxycycloposphazene (HP), lamellar GO-LA-HP avoid GO's toughness decline after modification, but also enhance fire sensitivity and flame resistance.

In Situ Formation of Compound Eye-like SAN-OSB Composite Microspheres by Melt-Blending Method: Enhancing Multiple-Scattering Effect.

The preparation of novel structures of light-diffusing particles is currently a research focus in the field of light-diffusing materials. This study, conducted by the common melt-blending process, controlled thermodynamic and kinetic factors to distribute smaller-sized organic silica bead (OSB) particles at the interface between a polycarbonate (PC) matrix and spherical island-phase styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer (SAN) for the in situ formation of compound eye-like microspheres with SAN as "large eyes" and OSBs as "small eyes". Through the multiple-scattering effects of these compound eye-like microspheres, these light-diffusing materials significantly improved the haze, scattering range, and light-shielding capabilities while maintaining high transmittance.

Injection Molding of Polymers and Polymer Composites.

Injection molding technology has been widely adopted to fabricate multifunctional polymeric components or structural parts for applications in fields such as automotives, electronics, packaging, aerospace, and many others [...