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Threading and Interlocking: A Mechanism for the Simultaneous Enhancement of Polymer Stiffness, Strength, and Ductility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

Lokman Torun ,
Alex J. Paraskos ,
Nicholas T. Tsui ,
Timothy M. Swager  and
Edwin L. Thomas
Lokman Torun
Affiliation:
lokman.torun@mam.gov.tr, TUBITAK MARMARA RESEARCH CENTER, Materials Institute, P. K. 21, Gebze, Kocaeli, N/A, Turkey, (90) 262 677 3087
Alex J. Paraskos
Affiliation:
paraskos@mit.edu, MIT, Department of Chemistry, 77 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA, 02139, United States
Nicholas T. Tsui
Affiliation:
ntsui@mit.edu, MIT, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 77 Mass Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, United States
Timothy M. Swager
Affiliation:
tswager@mit.edu, MIT, Department of Chemistry, 77 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA, 02139, United States
Edwin L. Thomas
Affiliation:
elt@mit.edu, MIT, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 77 Mass Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, United States
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Abstract

We have synthesized polyester systems containing pendant iptycene units and compared their mechanical/structural properties to a homologous reference polymer wherein benzene replaces iptycene units. Iptycenes have unique structural properties called internal molecular free volume (IMFV). The incorporation of iptycene into polyester backbones results in a polymer chain contour resembling “molecular barbed wire.” The contribution of iptycene to the mechanical properties of polyesters is significant and robust across concentration and processing conditions. The triptycene polyester films displayed a nearly 3-fold increase in Young's modulus, an approximately 3-fold increase in strength, and a more than 20-fold increase in strain to failure. We proposed that the presence of triptycene introduces two mechanisms for the enhancement of tensile mechanical properties: molecular threading and molecular interlocking.

Keywords

stress/strain relationshipductilitymacromolecular structure
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1086: Symposium U – Mechanics of Nanoscale Materials , 2008 , 1086-U08-30
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2008

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