D.J. Gilmour, S.G. Hatzikiriakos, L.L. Schafer
A2O Advanced Materials Inc.,
Canada
Keywords: adhesives, coatings, self-healing, corrosion, glue, dynamic bonds, hydrogen bonds, functional polymers, amines, polyolefins, regenerative
Summary:
Adhesives and coatings that cure are fundamentally limited by non-reversible bonds that form during application and can’t be reformed once broken. In industry, short and single product lifespans, particularly in harsh and impactful environments, creates the imperative for rigorous maintenance and intervention cycles through the thinking of ‘use lots, replace often’. Dynamic bonding materials overcome this limitation by utilizing reversible bonds that change and optimize responsively with their environment. This presentation will showcase a novel class of amine-functionalized polyolefins that harness dynamic hydrogen bonds to access a combination of adhesive, self-healing and non-linear viscoelastic effects.1-3 These materials are generated by catalytic hydroaminoalkylation in a practical and direct approach that overcomes industrial limitations in amine functionalization. These materials combine the thermal and mechanical stability of polyolefins with the potent reactivity and associative properties of precisely installed amine groups. In the bulk, this creates materials with rapid self-healing, adhesion in challenging aqueous environments, and compatibility with virtually any other material. These materials are being deployed in industrial applications where their dynamic properties overcome product failure; for example within anti-corrosion coatings that can recover a corrosion barrier even after intentional defects are introduced.