Strong, Spontaneous, and Self-Healing Poly(Ionic Liquid) Elastomer Underwater Adhesive with Borate Ester Dynamic Crosslinking
Qingning Li1, Sijie Zheng1, Ziyang Liu1, Weizheng Li1, Xiaowei Wang1, Qiang Cao1, Feng Yan1,2（严锋）*
1Jiangsu Engineering Laboratory of Novel Functional Polymeric Materials Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Advanced Negative Carbon Technologies Suzhou Key Laboratory of Soft Material and New Energy College of Chemistry Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Soochow University Suzhou 215123, China
2State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering, Donghua University Shanghai 201620, China
Adv. Mater. 2024, 36, 2413901
Abstract: Adhesion in aqueous environments is often hindered by the water layer on the surface of the substrate due to the water sensitivity of the adhesive, greatly limiting the application environment. Here, a borate ester dynamically crosslinked poly(ionic liquid) elastomer adhesive (PIEA) with high strength, toughness, self-healing abilities, and ionic conductivity is synthesized by copolymerizing hydrophobic ionic liquid monomer ([HPVIm][TFSI]) and 2-methoxyethyl acrylate (MEA). The adhesion strength of PIEA can increase spontaneously from almost no adhesion to 314 kPa after 12 h without any external preloading due to the dissociation of the borate ester in water, leading to noncovalent interactions between the hydroxyl groups of PIEA and the substrate. Additionally, PIEA can be developed for soft sensors or ion electrodes to enable underwater detection and communication. This strategy offers broad application potential for the development of novel underwater smart adhesives.
Article information: //doi.org/10.1002/adma.202413901
