Researchers in Spain have reportedly created the first self-healing polymer. Dubbed the 'Terminator' polymer, in tribute to the self-healing T-1000 terminator robot from the film Terminator 2, the new material can spontaneously and independently repair itself without any intervention. The researchers suggest it could find applications in improving the security and lifetime of everyday plastic products, such as electrical components, cars, and houses.
This is the first time a self-healing polymer that can spontaneously achieve quantitative healing without any sort of catalyst has ever been reported. Using a simple and inexpensive approach, the scientists from the Centre for Electrochemical Technologies in San Sebastian prepared the self-healing thermoset elastomers from common polymeric starting materials.
Video footage demonstrates how the permanently cross-linked poly(urea-urethane) elastomeric network can completely mends itself after being cut in half with a razor blade. The regeneration is caused by a metathesis reaction (where bonds are exchanged between chemical species) of aromatic disulphides, which naturally occurs at room temperature.
Behaving like a Velcro-like sealant or adhesive, the polymer displays an impressive 97 percent healing efficiency after just two hours. After cutting the material into two separate pieces and allowing the material to self-heal, the scientists demonstrate that the material is once again unbreakable when manually stretched.
According to the study authors, Alaitz Rekondo, Roberto Martin, Alaitz Ruiz de Luzuriaga, German Cabanero, Hans Grande and Ibon Odriozola, given that poly(urea-urethane)s with similar chemical composition and mechanical properties already experience widespread use in a variety of commercial products, it would be easy for their system to be quickly incorporated in real industrial applications.
The study findings are published in the Royal Society of Chemistry journal, Materials Horizons. The Royal Society of Chemistry is the world's leading chemistry community, with over 48,000 members around the globe. The United Kingdom-based professional body has been promoting, supporting and celebrating chemistry for over 170 years, and works to shape the future of the chemical sciences.
