What if we could invent materials that can repair themselves when damaged? Polymer molecules in various states – solid, melt, solution – are susceptible to covalent bond changes in response to ...

Semiconducting polymer nanomaterials are advanced π-conjugated polymers with alternating double and single bonds, which allow for π-electron delocalization and intermolecular π−π interactions. Unlike ...

Piezoelectric materials convert mechanical stress into electricity, or vice versa, and can be useful in sensors, actuators and many other applications. But implementing piezoelectrics in polymers -- ...

Scientists are keen to develop new materials for lightweight, flexible, and affordable wearable electronics so that, one day, dropping our smartphones won’t result in irreparable damage. One team at ...

Every day, new advances in polymer seal and material technology are made for a broad range of applications that protect, enhance and improve our lives. In order to keep up with the fast pace of need ...

Polymers are versatile materials, of which plastics are perhaps the most well known examples. Under a microscope, polymers usually look like squiggly threads, one-dimensional chains of units called ...

Traditional polyesters are obtained via ring-opening polymerization (ROP), but significant research is currently directed at designing new biodegradable vinyl polymers with esters groups in the ...

ORNL's invention may change plastic's environmental fate by rearranging polymeric building blocks to customize the properties of plastics. Molecular subunits link to produce polymer chains that can ...

Designing plastics that can be broken down easily after their use phase have often required a trade-off between stability and ...