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Cellulose Nanocrystal Elastomers with Reversible Visible Color.
Charlotte E Boott1, Andy Tran1, Wadood Y Hamad2
1Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, 2036 Mail Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z1, Canada.
Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|October 31, 2019
Summary
New cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) elastomer composites offer tunable, reversible visible color in response to mechanical stress. These stretchable materials can be encoded for advanced sensor and display applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Polymer Science
Background:
- Responsive photonic crystals are crucial for advanced mechanical sensors and soft displays.
- Development of novel materials is essential for innovation in photonic crystal technology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop stretchable chiral nematic cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) elastomer composites with reversible visible color.
- To tune the structural color of these composites by mechanical stress.
- To explore methods for encoding these responsive materials.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of stretchable chiral nematic CNC-elastomer composites.
- Mechanical testing (stretching/compression) to induce color changes.
- Characterization using reflectance optical microscopy and circular dichroism.
- Structural analysis via 2D-X-ray diffraction.
- Patterning techniques including water-patterning and masked evaporation.
Main Results:
- The CNC-elastomer composites exhibited reversible visible color changes upon mechanical stress.
- Stretching the material (50-300% elongation) tuned the structural color from red to blue.
- The chiral nematic structure was maintained, with helical pitch changes driving the color.
- Encoded stretchable CNC-elastomers were successfully prepared using patterning methods.
Conclusions:
- Stretchable chiral nematic CNC-elastomer composites represent a promising new material for responsive photonic applications.
- Tunable structural color through mechanical deformation opens possibilities for sensors and displays.
- Encoding capabilities enhance the potential for complex device integration.
