Mechanoluminescent Imaging of Osmotic Stress-Induced Damage in a Glassy Polymer Network.
A chemiluminescent mechanophore, bis(adamantyl-1,2-dioxetane), is used to investigate the covalent bond scission resulting from the sorption of chloroform by glassy poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) networks. Bis(adamantyl)-1,2-dioxetane units incorporated as cross-linkers underwent mechanoluminescent scission, demonstrating that solvent ingress caused covalent bond scission. At higher cross-linking densities, the light emission took the form of hundreds of discrete bursts, widely varying in intensity, with each burst composed of 107-109photons. Camera imaging indicated a relatively slow propagation of bursts through the material and permitted analysis of the spatial correlation between the discrete bond-breaking events. The implications of these observations for the mechanism of sorption and fracture are discussed.
Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry and the Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology , P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Jess M
JM
Clough
Laboratory of Physical Chemistry and Soft Matter, Agrotechnology and Food Sciences Group, Wageningen University , PO Box 8038, 6700 EK Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Jasper
J
van der Gucht
Laboratory of Macromolecular and Organic Chemistry and the Institute for Complex Molecular Systems, Eindhoven University of Technology , P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Rint P
RP
Sijbesma