The self-healing properties and ionic sensing capabilities of the human skin offer inspiring groundwork for the designs of stretchable iontronic skins. However, from electronic to ionic mechanosensitive skins, simultaneously achieving autonomously superior self-healing properties, superior elasticity, and effective control of ion dynamics in a homogeneous system is rarely feasible. Here, we report a Cl-functionalized iontronic pressure sensitive material (CLiPS), designed via the introduction of Cl-functionalized groups into a polyurethane matrix, which realizes an ultrafast, autonomous self-healing speed (4.3 µm/min), high self-healing efficiency (91% within 60 min), and mechanosensitive piezo-ionic dynamics. This strategy promotes both an excellent elastic recovery (100%) and effective control of ion dynamics because the Cl groups trap the ions in the system via ion-dipole interactions, resulting in excellent pressure sensitivity (7.36 kPa−1) for tactile sensors. The skin-like sensor responds to pressure variations, demonstrating its potential for touch modulation in future wearable electronics and human–machine interfaces.
Colloidal electrospinning is identified as a powerful tool for the fabrication of nonwoven nanofiber webs with increased functionality by the introduction of functional fillers into the webs. However, the use of this method is still limited due to minimal material diversity, low concentration of fillers, difficulty in mass production, and process difficulties. In this paper, syringeless electrospinning is suggested as an excellent method for colloidal electrospinning. Since the polymeric solution is supplied from the container through rotating drums, this method is relatively free from the precipitation of fillers present in the polymeric solution. Syringeless electrospinning provides a higher production rate than needle‐based electrospinning with simple process control. The syringeless technique makes it possible to expand the scope of the method to various polymers and inorganic fillers with sufficiently high filler concentrations. Herein, nonwoven nanofiber webs with a diverse combination of polymers (polyacrylonitrile (PAN), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)) and fillers (silica, titania, zirconia, activated carbons, and metal‐organic framework (MOF) crystals) are presented. Nonwoven nanofiber webs comprising PAN and UiO‐66‐NH2 MOF crystal are prepared for detoxification of a nerve agent simulant, diisopropyl fluorophosphate (DFP), as a representative example of applications.
With intrinsic optical and dynamic properties of polysulfide chains, inverse vulcanized copolymers have demonstrated immense potential for infrared (IR) optical applications. However, preparing highly IR‐transparent sulfur‐rich copolymers without sacrificing their thermomechanical properties remains challenging. To overcome the trade‐off relationship between IR optical and thermomechanical properties, an in situ microphase separation strategy for the inverse vulcanization of elemental sulfur utilizing self‐crosslinkable 1,3,5‐trivinylbenzene (TVB) is presented. Even with 80 wt% sulfur content, the microphase‐separated TVB‐rich domain self‐reinforces the copolymer with a noteworthy modulus of ≈2.0 GPa and a high glass transition temperature (Tg) of 92.6 °C, while still exhibiting outstanding IR optical properties. This work is expected to provide insights into the fundamental structure–property relationships of sulfur‐rich copolymers and pave the way for various practical applications.
Silicon-based electrodes are widely recognized as promising anodes for high-energy-density lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Silicon is a representative anode material for next-generation LIBs due to its advantages of being an abundant resource and having a high theoretical capacity and a low electrochemical reduction potential. However, its huge volume change during the charge–discharge process and low electrical conductivity can be critical problems in its utilization as a practical anode material. In this study, we solved the problem of the large volume expansion of silicon anodes by using the carbon coating method with a low-cost phenolic resin that can be used to obtain high-performance LIBs. The surrounding carbon layers on the silicon surface were well made from a phenolic resin via a solvent-assisted wet coating process followed by carbonization. Consequently, the electrochemical performance of the carbon-coated silicon anode achieved a high specific capacity (3092 mA h g−1) and excellent capacity retention (~100% capacity retention after 50 cycles and even 64% capacity retention after 100 cycles at 0.05 C). This work provides a simple but effective strategy for the improvement of silicon-based anodes for high-performance LIBs.
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