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Synthesis of Programmable Main-chain Liquid-crystalline Elastomers Using a Two-stage Thiol-acrylate Reaction
Published on: January 19, 2016
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One reaction to make highly stretchable or extremely soft silicone elastomers from easily available materials
Pengpeng Hu1, Jeppe Madsen1, Anne Ladegaard Skov2
1Danish Polymer Centre, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, DTU, Søltofts Plads, Building 227, 2800 Kgs, Lyngby, Denmark.
Nature Communications
|January 19, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed a new silicone elastomer curing method using a platinum-catalyzed reaction. This process allows for highly stretchable (2800% strain) and extremely soft silicone elastomers for advanced soft devices.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Chemistry
Background:
- Soft silicone elastomers are crucial for stretchable devices.
- Existing chemistries struggle to achieve superior stretchability and softness simultaneously.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an efficient curing reaction for silicone elastomers.
- To enable versatile tailoring of elastomer properties beyond intrinsic limitations.
Main Methods:
- Platinum-catalyzed reaction of hydrosilane (Si-H) functional polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with oxygen and water.
- Controlled slow crosslinking to form highly entangled and bottle-brush elastomers.
Main Results:
- Achieved highly stretchable silicone elastomers with a maximum strain of 2800%.
- Prepared extremely soft silicone elastomers with a lowest shear modulus of 1.2 kPa.
- Demonstrated versatile tailoring of elastomer properties through controlled crosslinking.
Conclusions:
- The novel curing chemistry offers an easy method to produce advanced silicone elastomers.
- This approach overcomes limitations in achieving both high stretchability and softness.
- The developed elastomers are suitable for fabricating next-generation stretchable and soft devices.
