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Polymer chemistry is the study of the synthesis, characterization and properties of polymer molecules or macromolecules, which are large molecules composed of repeating chemical subunits known as monomers.
The precision synthesis of cyclic polymers with ultrahigh molar mass (UHMM) and circularity is challenging. Now, a method that involves superbase-mediated living linear-chain growth followed by macromolecular cyclization triggered by protic quenching enables the on-demand production of UHMM cyclic polymers with a narrow dispersity and closed-loop chemical recyclability.
Supramolecular polymer networks have unique and useful properties due to the reversible nature of their cross-links. Here, the authors show that when two distinct supramolecular interaction classes exist within a single cross-link, new functions can result.
The inherent instability of poly(sulfur) renders the conversion of elementary sulfur into sulfur-rich polymers challenging which limits the use of this industrial by-product. Here, the authors demonstrate that inorganic sulfur can be utilized by copolymerizing with cyclic disulfides, producing high-performance thermoplastic elastomers with self-healing ability and degradability.
Certain devices require rapid adhesion and detachment, but achieving both can be challenging. Here, the authors report the development of a supramolecular hydrogel with reversible tough adhesion and triggered photodetachment.
Simple control of the thermoresponsive properties of polymers in water over a broad range is achieved by using a designed urethane-containing acrylamide monomer in combination with a hydroxy-containing precursor monomer, which forms a statistical sequence due to its similar backbone. The copolymers exhibited a lower critical solution temperature-type responsive behavior in water, and the effects of structural factors such as composition, molecular weight, end groups and side-chain structure in urethane monomers were systematically evaluated.
A synthesis method for large-scale conjugated polymers as well as studies under operational conditions show that research on organic mixed ionic–electronic conductors continues to progress.
The precision synthesis of cyclic polymers with ultrahigh molar mass (UHMM) and circularity is challenging. Now, a method that involves superbase-mediated living linear-chain growth followed by macromolecular cyclization triggered by protic quenching enables the on-demand production of UHMM cyclic polymers with a narrow dispersity and closed-loop chemical recyclability.
An article in Nature Communications describes a straightforward strategy to synthesize chemically recyclable polytrithiocarbonates with diverse structures.
Pentagonal polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS)-based giant atoms self-assemble into Frank–Kasper phases that have not been previously observed in soft-matter systems.