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Published on: November 7, 2016
One-Pot Construction of Carboxyl-Rich Silk Nanofiber/PDES Elastomers for Flexible Strain Sensors
Zhixing Hu1, Yue Ma1, Pan Sun1
1Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, College of Chemical Engineering, College of Light Industry and Food Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing210037, China.
Abstract:
Silk nanofibers (SNFs) are promising bio-based reinforcements for flexible sensors, but their integration into conductive elastomers is limited by complex processing and inefficient nanofibrillation. Here, a green one-pot strategy was developed to integrate silk carboxylation, nanofibrillation, and in situ photopolymerization within a hydrated oxalic acid/choline chloride deep eutectic solvent system. The resulting carboxyl-rich SNFs had an average length of 271.51 nm and a carboxyl content of 1.249 mmol g-1. Glycidyl methacrylate enabled formation of a physically and chemically dual-crosslinked SNF/poly(deep eutectic solvent) (SNF/PDES) elastomer, exhibiting 1080% strain, 1.28 MPa tensile strength, and 9.57 MJ m-3 toughness. As a strain sensor, the elastomer showed gauge factors of 0.861, 1.143, and 2.018 across 0-500% strain and stable output over 1000 cycles. This sustainable strategy provides a scalable route toward high-performance wearable sensing materials.
