Light- and heat-triggered polyurethane based on dihydroxyl anthracene derivatives for self-healing applications

• Published in: Journal of materials chemistry. A, Materials for energy and sustainability Vol. 5; no. 17; pp. 8010 - 8017
• Main Authors: Fang, Yuanlai, Du, Xiaosheng, Du, Zongliang, Wang, Haibo, Cheng, Xu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: Anthracene; anthracenes; Derivatives; Efficiency; Healing; Polyurethane resins; polyurethanes; Renewable energy; Self healing materials; Synthesis (chemistry); temperature; thermal stability; thermogravimetry
• ISSN: 2050-7488; 2050-7496; 2050-7496
• DOI: 10.1039/C7TA00871F

To develop materials with self-healing properties, polyurethane (PU) was modified with anthracene derivatives which endowed the PU films with a self-healing ability. The reversibility of the characteristic reaction, thermal performance and self-healing ability of PU anthracene (PUAn) films were systematically characterized by a series of experiments, showing that the synthesized PU elastomers were endowed with a satisfactory self-healing ability and reinforced thermal stability. Furthermore, the reversible degree of this characteristic reaction is as high as 35% and TGA analyses indicated that the decomposition temperature of the PUAn8 films was increased by 30 °C. Finally, the healing process took only a short time of about 40 min and the healing efficiency of PUAn8 was enhanced up to 94.84%. The results suggest that this system opened up the prospect for the development of self-healing materials.