RESUMEN
Environmentally friendly crosslinked polymer networks feature degradable covalent or non-covalent bonds, with many of them manifesting dynamic characteristics. These attributes enable convenient degradation, facile reprocessibility, and self-healing capabilities. However, the inherent instability of these crosslinking bonds often compromises the mechanical properties of polymer networks, limiting their practical applications. In this context, environmentally friendly dual-crosslinking polymer networks (denoted EF-DCPNs) have emerged as promising alternatives to address this challenge. These materials effectively balance the need for high mechanical properties with the ability to degrade, recycle, and/or self-heal. Despite their promising potential, investigations into EF-DCPNs remain in their nascent stages, and several gaps and limitations persist. This Review provides a comprehensive overview of the synthesis, properties, and applications of recent progress in EF-DCPNs. Firstly, synthetic routes to a rich variety of EF-DCPNs possessing two distinct types of dynamic bonds (i.e., imine, disulfide, ester, hydrogen bond, coordination bond, and other bonds) are introduced. Subsequently, complex structure- and dynamic nature-dependent mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of EF-DCPNs are discussed, followed by their exemplary applications in electronics and biotechnology. Finally, future research directions in this rapidly evolving field are outlined.
RESUMEN
Durable superhydrophobic anti-erosion/anticorrosion coatings are highly demanded across various applications. However, achieving coatings with exceptional superhydrophobicity, mechanical strength, and corrosion resistance remains a grand challenge. Herein, a robust microstructure coating, inspired by the cylindrical structures situated on the surface of conch shell, for mitigating erosion and corrosion damages in gas transportation pipelines is reported. Specifically, citric acid monohydrate as a pore-forming agent is leveraged to create a porous structure between layers, effectively buffering the impact on the surface. As a result, the coating demonstrates remarkable wear resistance and water repellency. Importantly, even after abrasion by sandpaper and an erosion loop test, the resulting superhydrophobic surfaces retain the water repellency. The design strategy offers a promising route to manufacturing multifunctional materials with desired features and structural complexities, thereby enabling effective self-cleaning and antifouling abilities in harsh operating environments for an array of applications, including self-cleaning windows, antifouling coatings for medical devices, and anti-erosion/anticorrosion protection, among other areas.
RESUMEN
Fluorine-free liquid-repellent coatings have been highly demanded for a variety of applications. However, rapid formation of coatings possessing outstanding oil repellency and strong bonding ability as well as good mechanical strength (e.g., bendability, impact resistance, and scratch resistance) remains a grand challenge. Herein, a robust strategy to rapidly create fluorine-free oil-repellent coatings in only 30 s via rational design of a semi-interpenetrating polymer network structure is reported. The resulting coating manifests strong bonding capability both in air and underwater. More importantly, it not only provides unprecedented oil repellency, even to high-viscosity crude oil, but also achieves both excellent bendability and hardness. This simple yet effective design strategy opens up a new avenue to manufacture multifunctional materials and devices with desirable features and structural complexities for applications in sustainable antifouling, drag reduction, nondestructive transportation, liquid collection, and biomedicine, among other areas.