Development of dynamic preventive self-healing thin films based on reversible covalent networks (FWOAL667)

Thin cross-linked polymer films with multiple reversible covalent bonds are developed as a sustainable self-restoring alternative for regular surface coatings prone to fatigue- and micro damage. In this project, novel photo-reversible covalent linking units will be synthesized that can be split and reformed multiple times by different wavelengths of light without appreciable degradation. An innovative network-design will guarantee that small damages will be repaired by a continuous re-shuffling of reversible bonds, while retaining the overall covalent network and thereby the material's integrity.
The material development will be supported by a thorough physicochemical characterization, aiming at building-up fundamental knowledge relating to the photoreversible and thermoreversible reactions, the self-restoring process, the interactions between the materials, and structure-processing-property relations. Advanced thermal analysis methods, including photo-DSC, AFM-based nanothermal analysis, and chip-based photo-nanocalorimetry, will be further developed to study the thermodynamics and kinetics of the photo- and thermoreversible reactions of the polymer matrix, and the (local) progress of the self-restoring reactions in thin films.

Keywords:material science, thermal analysis, chemistry, surface analysis, NMR, polymer science, engineering, electrochemistry

Disciplines:Construction materials technology, Materials science and engineering, Polymeric materials, Other engineering and technology, Analytical chemistry, Condensed matter physics and nanophysics, Physical chemistry