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A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Smart and Functional Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2023) | Viewed by 14278

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Dr. Long-Cheng Tang

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Guest Editor

Key Laboratory of Organosilicon Chemistry and Material Technology of Ministry of Education, College of Material, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
Interests: functional fluorosilicone polymer: design, synthesis, and reaction mechanism; nano-material fabrication: surface and interface, structure control and property; polymer nanocomposites, particularly multifunctional silicone foam composites; smart fire warning and strain/gas-responsive sensors: from design to application

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymer foams and their composite materials, which are easily processed and have multiple functions, have attracted considerable interest from both academic and industrial fields over the past several decades. Owing to their unique porous structure and lightweight features, they are widely used for various applications, including as structural parts in the automotive industry, thermal insulation in exterior walls, packing materials in logistics, core materials for sandwich composites, and cushioning in mattresses. However, in some emerging fields, traditional polymer foams (e.g., polyurethane and polystyrene foams) still present limitations and disadvantages due to, for example, their easy ignition and combustion, unstable structure stability under high temperatures, poor surface hydrophocity, and electrically insulating features.

To address the above issues, the design, synthesis, and characterization of novel polymer foams and functional polymer foam composites are crucial, as these materials have incredible potential in several emerging fields, such as in energy storage and conversion, wearable electronics, absorption and separation, and tissue engineering, among others. Normally, these foams and composites have excellent mechanical properties and retardance, high electrical conductivity, super-hydrophobic surfaces, enhanced structure reliability under varying temperatures, and good biocompatibility. They open up fabrication and application opportunities at the interfaces of materials, engineering, chemistry, physics and biology.

This Special Issue will focus on the current development of and future opportunities presented by various polymer foams and novel polymer foam composites. Both review and original research papers investigating the above topics through perspectives of materials and engineering sciences, chemistry, physics, or biochemistry are welcome.

Published manuscripts will not be accepted, nor those under consideration for publication elsewhere. All submitted manuscripts will undergo peer review by three experts before a final decision is made.

Dr. Long-Cheng Tang
Guest Editor

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 6140 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Facile UV-Induced Surface Covalent Modification to Fabricate Durable Superhydrophobic Fabric for Efficient Oil–Water Separation

by Mengmeng Zhou, Xiaohui Liu, Fengjiao Xu, Yongbing Pei, Lianbin Wu and Long-Cheng Tang

Polymers 2023, 15(11), 2505; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15112505 - 29 May 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1675

Abstract

In this work, a durable superhydrophobic fabric was fabricated by using a facile UV-induced surface covalent modification strategy. 2-isocyanatoethylmethacrylate (IEM) containing isocyanate groups can react with the pre-treated hydroxylated fabric, producing IEM molecules covalently grafted onto the fabric’s surface, and the double bonds of IEM and dodecafluoroheptyl methacrylate (DFMA) underwent a photo-initiated coupling reaction under UV light radiation, resulting in the DFMA molecules further grafting onto the fabric’s surface. The Fourier transform infrared, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy results revealed that both IEM and DFMA were covalently grafted onto the fabric’s surface. The formed rough structure and grafted low-surface-energy substance contributed to the excellent superhydrophobicity (water contact angle of ~162°) of the resultant modified fabric. Notably, such a superhydrophobic fabric can be used for efficient oil–water separation, for example a high separation efficiency of over 98%. More importantly, the modified fabric exhibited excellent durable superhydrophobicity in harsh conditions such as immersion in organic solvents for 72 h, an acidic or alkali solution (pH = 1–12) for 48 h, undergoing laundry washing for 3 h, exposure to extreme temperatures (from −196° to 120°), as well as damage such as 100 cycles of tape-peeling and a 100-cycle abrasion test; the water contact angle only slightly decreased from ~162° to 155°. This was attributed to the IEM and DFMA molecules grated onto the fabric through stable covalent interactions, which could be accomplished using the facile strategy, where the alcoholysis of isocyanate and the grafting of DFMA via click coupling chemistry were integrated into one-step. Therefore, this work provides a facile one-step surface modification strategy for preparing durable superhydrophobic fabric, which is promising for efficient oil–water separation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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16 pages, 2719 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Biobased Castor Oil-Based Polyurethane Foams Grafted with Octadecylsilane-Modified Diatomite for Use as Eco-Friendly and Low-Cost Sorbents for Crude Oil Clean-Up Applications

by Helanka J. Perera, Anjali Goyal, Saeed M. Alhassan and Hussain Banu

Polymers 2022, 14(23), 5310; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14235310 - 5 Dec 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2814

Abstract

Herein we report the synthesis and characterization of novel castor oil-based polyurethane (PU) foam functionalized with octadecyltrichlorosilane (C18)-modified diatomaceous earth (DE) particles, exhibiting superior hydrophobicity and oil adsorption, and poor water absorption, for use in effective clean-up of crude oil spillage in water bodies. High-performance and low-cost sorbents have a tremendous attraction in oil spill clean-up applications. Recent studies have focused on the use of castor oil as a significant polyol that can be used as a biodegradable and eco-friendly raw material for the synthesis of PU. However, biobased in-house synthesis of foam modified with C18-DE particles has not yet been reported. This study involves the synthesis of PU using castor oil, further modification of castor oil-based PU using C18 silane, characterization studies and elucidation of oil adsorption capacity. The FTIR analysis confirmed the fusion of C18 silane particles inside the PU skeleton by adding the new functional group, and the XRD study signified the inclusion of crystalline peaks in amorphous pristine PU foam owing to the silane cross-link structure. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated improvement in thermal stability and high residual content after chemical modification with alkyl chain moieties. The SEM and EDX analyses showed the surface’s roughness and the incorporation of inorganic and organic elements into pristine PU foam. The contact angle analysis showed increased hydrophobicity of the modified PU foams treated with C18-DE particles. The oil absorption studies showed that the C18-DE-modified PU foam, in comparison with the unmodified one, exhibited a 2.91-fold increase in the oil adsorption capacity and a 3.44-fold decrease in the water absorbing nature. From these studies, it is understood that this novel foam can be considered as a potential candidate for cleaning up oil spillage on water bodies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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18 pages, 3917 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Determination of the Long-Term Thermal Performance of Foam Insulation Materials through Heat and Slicing Acceleration

by Minjung Bae, Hosang Ahn, Jaesik Kang, Gyeongseok Choi and Hyunjung Choi

Polymers 2022, 14(22), 4926; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14224926 - 15 Nov 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3386

Abstract

Foam insulation materials are widely used in the construction industry due to their low thermal conductivity attributable to their microstructures and their low-conductivity blowing agents and affordability. In this study, we evaluate how the thermal performance of foam insulation materials used for the exterior walls of buildings, viz., extruded polystyrene (XPS), polyisocyanurate (PIR), and phenolic foam (PF), age over the life cycle of a building. To compare the aging of thermal performance during the life cycle of a building, each material was tested at 70 and 110 °C and with slicing acceleration according to EN and ISO standards. The thermal conductivity of each foam insulation material was measured using a heat flow meter at an operating temperature of 23 °C and converted into thermal resistance values. Different foam insulation materials have different aging procedures according to material-specific EN standards, while ISO 11561 applies the same procedure to all material classifications. Upon comparing the aged values according to ISO and EN standards to the initial values, the analysis showed a change rate of 23 to 26% in PIR and 18 to 20% in PF. In XPS, a rate of change of 10 to 23.8% was calculated. Our results indicated that the slicing acceleration induced a thermal resistance reduction rate about three times faster than aging at 70 °C. However, the long-term changed thermal resistance values of the foam insulation material applied via the calculating procedure specified in the ISO and EN standards were similar. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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13 pages, 5702 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sensitive Organic Vapor Sensors Based on Flexible Porous Conductive Composites with Multilevel Pores and Thin, Rough, Hollow-Wall Structure

by Ting-Ting Kong, Jia-Hai Zhou, Feng Nie, Chao Zhang, Fei-Xiang Shen, Shou-Wei Dai, Hong-Tao Pan, Li-Xiu Gong and Li Zhao

Polymers 2022, 14(22), 4809; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14224809 - 9 Nov 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1662

Abstract

Advanced organic vapor sensors that simultaneously have high sensitivity, fast response, and good reproducibility are required. Herein, flexible, robust, and conductive vapor-grown carbon fibers (VGCFs)-filled polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) porous composites (VGCFs/PDMS sponge (CPS)) with multilevel pores and thin, rough, and hollows wall were prepared based on the sacrificial template method and a simple dip-spin-coating process. The optimized material showed outstanding mechanical elasticity and durability, good electrical conductivity and hydrophobicity, as well as excellent acid and alkali tolerance. Additionally, CPS exhibited good reproducible sensing behavior, with a high sensitivity of ~1.5 × 10⁵ s⁻¹ for both static and flowing organic vapor, which was not affected in cases such as 20% squeezing deformation or environment humidity distraction (20~60% RH). Interestingly, both the reproducibility and sensitivity of CPS were better than those of film-shaped VGCFs/PDMS (CP), which has a thickness of two hundred microns. Therefore, the contradiction between the reproducibility and high sensitivity was well-solved here. The above excellent performance could be ascribed to the unique porous structures and the rough, thin, hollow wall of CPS, providing various gas channels and large contact areas for organic vapor penetration and diffusion. This work paves a new way for developing advanced vapor sensors by optimizing and tailoring the pore structure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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16 pages, 24442 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Bio-Based Porous Aerogel with Bionic Structure and Hydrophobic Polymer Coating for Efficient Absorption of Oil/Organic Liquids

by Yi Huang, Yucheng Wu, Hao Tao and Bihe Yuan

Polymers 2022, 14(21), 4579; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14214579 - 28 Oct 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2499

Abstract

Increasing contamination risk from oil/organic liquid leakage creates strong demand for the development of absorbents with excellent hydrophobicity and absorption capacity. Herein, bagasse was carbonized to form porous char with a special structure of array-style and vertically perforated channels, and then the activation process enlarged the pore volume of the char. With the cooperation of low-surface-energy polydimethylsiloxane and diatomaceous earth particles, the modified activated carbon aerogel (MACA) was fabricated by modifying the surface coating and mastoid structure on the bagasse char. Moreover, the MACA demonstrates high porosity oil-water separation, hydrophobicity, and considerable absorption capacity (4.06–12.31 g/g) for gasoline and various organic solvents. This work converts agricultural waste into an efficient porous adsorbent, offering a scalable and commercially feasible solution to solving the leakages of oil/organic solvents. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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14 pages, 1632 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A New Approach to the Structure-Properties Relationships Determination for Porous Filled Reinforced Materials

by Miroslav Černý, Josef Petruš and Veronika Pavliňáková

Polymers 2022, 14(20), 4390; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14204390 - 18 Oct 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1291

Abstract

This study describes a new mathematical approach to the relationship between mechanical properties (tensile modulus, ultimate strength, and strain), composition as well as structure of porous-filled reinforced composites. The composite system consisted of a polyurethane matrix, a rubber filler, and a small amount of polyethylene terephthalate as a reinforcement. The newly proposed equations are based on a special mixing rule with the same basic form for all studied properties. The mixing rule contains a correction parameter η, which differs in different filler content in the filled part of the composite. Here, a cubic exponential function including the product of suitable structural parameters and exponents ensuring the best fitting and describable by matrix properties were successfully defined to fit the different values of correction parameter. The proposed equations should be a suitable step to obtain a relationship for describing the mechanical behavior of porous-filled and reinforced composites in the case of a small amount of reinforcement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymer Foam and Composite Materials)

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