Chemical Amplification of Subthreshold Base Triggers to Drive Sol-Gel Transitions in Polymers

Shuqi Lai, Gaurav Chaudhary, Zhelong Jiang, Randy H. Ewoldt, Paul V. Braun

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Chemical amplification has been widely applied in applications ranging from stimuli sensing to advanced photoresists, but it is rarely utilized to drive productive mechanical property changes. Here, we demonstrate the use of a base amplifier to drive the gelation of a functional polymer solution, in response to a subthreshold base trigger through a mechanism whereby the trigger drives a dramatic increase in the base concentration driven by base amplification, resulting in complexation of Fe(III) and polymer-bound catechol groups and subsequent gelation of the polymer solution. The concomitant crystallization of dibenzofulvene, which is a byproduct of base amplification, led to significant stiffening of the resultant gel and an unexpected temperature-sensitive change of gel stiffness.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1503-1510
Number of pages8
JournalACS Materials Letters
Volume4
Issue number8
Early online dateJul 18 2022
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 1 2022

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemical Engineering
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • General Materials Science

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