Polymer 4D printing: Advanced shape-change and beyond

4D printing is an exciting branch of additive manufacturing. It relies on established 3D printing techniques to fabricate objects in much the same way. However, structures which fall into the 4D printed category have the ability to change with time, hence the “extra dimension.” The common perception of 4D printed objects is that of macroscopic single-material structures limited to point-to-point shape change only, in response to either heat or water. However, in the area of polymer 4D printing, recent advancements challenge this understanding. A host of new polymeric materials have been designed which display a variety of wonderful effects brought about by unconventional stimuli, and advanced additive manufacturing techniques have been developed to accommodate them. As a result, the horizons of polymer 4D printing have been broadened beyond what was initially thought possible. In this review, we showcase the many studies which evolve the very definition of polymer 4D printing, and reveal emerging areas of research integral to its advancement.     

Uniform stability of semilinear wave equations with arbitrary local memory effects versus frictional dampings

This paper is concerned with the mixed initial–boundary value problem for semilinear wave equations with complementary frictional dampings and memory effects. We successfully establish uniform exponential and polynomial decay rates for the solutions to this initial–boundary value problem under much weak conditions concerning memory effects. More specifically, we obtain the exponential and polynomial decay rates after removing the fundamental condition that the memory-effect region includes a part of the system boundary, while the condition is a necessity in the previous literature; moreover, for the polynomial decay rates we only assume minimal conditions on the memory kernel function g, without the usual assumption of $g^{\prime }$ controlled by g.     

Connecting free volume with shape memory properties in noncytotoxic gamma‐irradiated polycyclooctene

The free volume holes of a shape memory polymer have been analyzed considering that the empty space between molecules is necessary for the molecular motion, and the shape memory response is based on polymer segments acting as molecular switches through variable flexibility with temperature or other stimuli. Therefore, thermomechanical analysis (TMA) and positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) have been applied to analyze shape recovery and free volume hole sizes in gamma‐irradiated polycyclooctene (PCO) samples, as a noncytotoxic alternative to more conventional PCO crosslinked via peroxide for future applications in medicine. Thus, a first approach relating structure, free volume holes and shape memory properties in gamma‐irradiated PCO is presented. The results suggest that free volume holes caused by gamma irradiation in PCO samples facilitate the recovery process by improving movement of polymer chains and open possibilities for the design and control of the macroscopic response. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015 , 53, 1080–1088     

3D‐morphology reconstruction of nanoscale phase‐separation in polymer memory blends

In many organic electronic devices functionality is achieved by blending two or more materials, typically polymers or molecules, with distinctly different optical or electrical properties in a single film. The local scale morphology of such blends is vital for the device performance. Here, a simple approach to study the full 3D morphology of phase‐separated blends, taking advantage of the possibility to selectively dissolve the different components is introduced. This method is applied in combination with AFM to investigate a blend of a semiconducting and ferroelectric polymer typically used as active layer in organic ferroelectric resistive switches. It is found that the blend consists of a ferroelectric matrix with three types of embedded semiconductor domains and a thin wetting layer at the bottom electrode. Statistical analysis of the obtained images excludes the presence of a fourth type of domains. The criteria for the applicability of the presented technique are discussed. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015 , 53, 1231–1237     

Synthesis and design of polyurethane and its nanocomposites derived from canola-castor oil: Mechanical,thermal and shape memory properties

The recent global pandemic and its tremendous effect on the price fluctuations of crude oil illustrates the side effects of petroleum dependency more evident than ever. Over the past decades, both academic and industrial communities spared endless efforts in order to replace petroleum-based materials with bio-derived resources. In the current study, a series of shape memory polymer composites (SMPC's) was synthesized from epoxidized vegetable oils, namely canola oil and castor oil fatty acids (COFA's) as a 100% bio-based polyol and isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) as an isocyanate using a solvent/catalyst-free method in order to eventuate polyurethanes (PU's). Thereafter, graphene oxide (GO) nanoplatelets were synthesized and embedded in the neat PU in order to overcome the thermomechanical drawbacks of the neat matrix. The chemical structure of the synthesized components, as well as the dispersion and distribution levels of the nanoparticles, was characterized. In the following, thermal and mechanical properties as well as shape memory behavior of the specimens were comprehensively investigated. Likewise, the thermal conductivity was determined. This study proves that synthesized PU's based on vegetable oil polyols, including graphene nanoparticles, exhibit proper thermal and mechanical properties, which make them stand as a potential candidate to compete with traditional petroleum-based SMPC's.     

形状记忆合金椭圆孔口问题的有限单元法

基于Lagoudas形状记忆合金(SMA)三维本构模型,假设材料为各向同性,推导了SMA平面应力状态的增量型本构方程,继而编写了ABAQUS用户自定义材料(UMAT)子程序,研究了在双向拉伸情况下,外载荷、温度、椭圆孔口长短轴之比对超弹性SMA椭圆孔口板中应力诱发马氏体相变区的影响。数值结果表明:应力诱发马氏体相变首先发生在椭圆孔口长轴端点部位,在外加载荷作用下逐渐扩展到板内,并由内向外形成马氏体相区、相变混合区和奥氏体相区;SMA板内应力诱发马氏体完全相变区面积与施加外载荷成正相关,与温度成负相关;随着椭圆孔口长短轴之比增大,SMA板内应力诱发马氏体完全相变区面积呈现出先减小后增大的趋势;拉应力差值相同时,相较于拉应力沿椭圆孔口长轴方向较大的情况,当拉应力沿椭圆孔口短轴方向较大时,SMA板内完全相变区面积较大,椭圆孔口周边应力集中现象更明显。     

Lignin,a biomass crosslinker,in a shape memory polycaprolactone network

This work reports a new direction of natural lignin valorization, which utilizes lignin to produce crosslinked polycaprolactone (PCL) via a straightforward synthesis. Lignin's hydroxyl groups of its multibranched phenolic structure allow lignin to serve as crosslinkers, whereas the aromatic groups serve as hard segments. The modified natural lignin containing alkene terminals is crosslinked with a thiol‐terminal PCL via Ru‐catalyzed photoredox thiol‐ene reaction. The high rate of gel contents measured for all crosslinked polymers, with the least being 84% of gel content, indicates efficient crosslinking. The prepared flat rectangular shape lignin‐crosslinked PCL sample demonstrates rapid thermal responsive shape memory behavior at 10 °C and 80 °C showing interconversion between a permanent and temporary shape. The melting temperature of the lignin‐crosslinked PCL is tunable by varying the percent weight of lignin. The 11, 21, and 30 wt % lignin demonstrated T_m of 42 °C, 35 °C, and 26 °C, respectively. The role of lignin as a crosslinker presented in this work suggests that lignin can serve as an efficient biomass‐based functional additive to polymers. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2019, 57, 2121–2130     

Global existence and bounds for blow‐up time in a class of nonlinear pseudo‐parabolic equations with a memory term

In this article, we consider the initial boundary value problem for a class of nonlinear pseudo‐parabolic equations with a memory term: Under suitable assumptions, we obtain the local and global existence of the solution by Galerkin method. We prove finite‐time blow‐up of the solution for initial data at arbitrary energy level and obtain upper bounds for blow‐up time by using the concavity method. In addition, by means of differential inequality technique, we obtain a lower bound for blow‐up time of the solution if blow‐up occurs.     

Controlled quantum teleportation of an unknown single-qutrit state in noisy channels with memory

This paper proposes a three-dimensional(3 D) controlled quantum teleportation scheme for an unknown single-qutrit state. The scheme is first introduced in an ideal environment, and its detailed implementation is described via the transformation of the quantum system. Four types of 3 D-Pauli-like noise corresponding to Weyl operators are created by Kraus operators: trit-flip, t-phase-flip, trit-phase-flip, and t-depolarizing. Then, this scheme is analyzed in terms of four types of noisy channel with memory. For each type of noise, the average fidelity is calculated as a function of memory and noise parameters, which is afterwards compared with classical fidelity. The results demonstrate that for trit-flip and t-depolarizing noises, memory will increase the average fidelity regardless of the noise parameter. However, for t-phase-flip and trit-phaseflip noises, memory may become ineffective in increasing the average fidelity above a certain noise threshold.