Visualizing separation at composite interfaces via spirolactam mechanophores
Date
2024-10-17
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
RSC Mechanochemistry
Abstract
The failure of interfaces between polymers and inorganic substrates often leads to deteriorated performance, as is the case for polymer matrix composites. Interfacial mechanophores (iMPs) have the potential to fluorescently measure interfacial failures. Spirolactam-based mechanophores are of interest due to their readily available synthetic precursors and compatibility with epoxy matrices. In this work, spirolactam is covalently bound at the interface of silica surfaces and epoxy, chosen due to the industrial relevance of glass fiber composites. The iMPs are mechanically activated through uniaxial tension applied to the composite while the resulting fluorescent response is observed in situ with a confocal microscope. Due to their real time sensing capabilities, iMPs are a promising technique to measure interfacial failures in composite materials more easily than with traditional optical microscopy techniques.
Description
This article was originally published in RSC Mechanochemistry. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.1039/D4MR00086B.
© 2024 The Author(s). Published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported Licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/).
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Citation
Gohl, Jared A., Tyler J. Roberts, Anna C. Freund, Nazmul Haque, Lisa M. Rueschhoff, Luke A. Baldwin, and Chelsea S. Davis. “Visualizing Separation at Composite Interfaces via Spirolactam Mechanophores.” RSC Mechanochemistry, 2025, 10.1039.D4MR00086B. https://doi.org/10.1039/D4MR00086B.