Facile Utilization
of Renewable Resources Containing
Cyclobutene Mechanophores: Preparation and Properties of High-Toughness
Materials with One-Step Cross-Linking by Frontal Ring-Opening Metathesis
Polymerization
posted on 2024-01-19, 16:06authored byXiaoxiao Lv, Qi Ao, Lin Jiang, Xiaogang Li, Xinglai Tong, Ying Song, Jun Tang
The latest progress in polymer mechanochemistry demonstrates
that
the toughness of materials can be enhanced through ring-breaking of
mechanophores. The mechanophores currently require complex organic
synthesis; in contrast, terpenoid renewable resources with mechanophores
are readily available. Here, a series of the expected high-toughness
materials are prepared by using caryophyllene with cyclobutane ring
units and dicyclopentadiene through frontal ring-opening metathesis
polymerization, and this copolymerization method is characterized
by one-step cross-linking and fast polymerization kinetics. These
copolymers, which can be easily prepared with different concentrations
of comonomers, exhibit a wide range of ultimate elongation (11.6–1167.5%),
tensile strength (0.1–57.1 MPa), and glass transition temperature
(−29 to 86 °C). The new resin formulation can also be
used for three-dimensional (3D) printing preparation, eliminating
the need for solvents and complicated equipment in the molding process.
This method paves the way for manufacturing cross-linked materials
with low energy, low cost, and high usage and also provides opportunities
for the application of sesquiterpene resources in the field of sustainable
chemistry.