Topic Review
Aggregation-Induced Emission and Fluorescent Mechanochromism
Mechanochromic fluorescent polymers are defined as materials that are able to detect a mechanical stress through a fluorescence output. This feature has evoked a growing interest in the last decades, thanks to the progress of fluorogenic molecules whose optical characteristics and chemical functionalities allow their effective insertion in many thermoplastic and thermoset matrices. Among the different types of fluorogenic probes able to detect mechanical solicitations, those with aggregation-induced emission (i.e., AIEgens) have attracted tremendous interest since their discovery in 2001. In this contribution, the main principles behind the AIEgens working behavior are introduced along with the current state of knowledge concerning the design and preparation of the derived mechanochromic fluorescent polymers. Examples are provided concerning the most ingenious solution for the preparation of chromogenic materials, starting from dierent types of commodity plastics or synthetic polymers and combined with the latest AIE technology to provide the most sensitive response to mechanical stress.
  • 2.8K
  • 30 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Agarose Hydrogels
Numerous compounds present in the ocean are contributing to the development of the biomedical field. Agarose, a polysaccharide derived from marine red algae, plays a vital role in biomedical applications because of its reversible temperature-sensitive gelling behavior, excellent mechanical properties, and high biological activity. Natural agarose hydrogel has a single structural composition that prevents it from adapting to complex biological environments.
  • 768
  • 26 May 2023
Topic Review
Aerogels for the Removal of Heavy Metal Ions
Aerogel is a general term referring to novel nanostructured materials characterized by very high porosity and tunable physicochemical properties that are obtained following a sol–gel process and an appropriate drying method. Such novel materials are entering the market in everyday products and a wide portfolio of properties usable for applications in health care, foods, agriculture, energy, and environmental remediation. Bio-based aerogels obtained from renewable resources and biomass are biodegradable and biocompatible due to the natural origin of the polymers, and for this reason, they greatly contribute to the sustainable concept of the bio-economy, offering promising commodities for environmental remediation.
  • 171
  • 22 Jan 2024
Topic Review
Advances in Conducting Polymers for Healthcare Monitoring
Conducting polymers (CPs) are an innovative class of materials recognized for their high flexibility and biocompatibility, making them an ideal choice for health monitoring applications that require flexibility. They are active in their design. Advances in fabrication technology allow the incorporation of CPs at various levels, by combining diverse CPs monomers with metal particles, 2D materials, carbon nanomaterials, and copolymers through the process of polymerization and mixing. This method produces materials with unique physicochemical properties and is highly customizable. In particular, the development of CPs with expanded surface area and high conductivity has significantly improved the performance of the sensors, providing high sensitivity and flexibility and expanding the range of available options. However, due to the morphological diversity of new materials and thus the variety of characteristics that can be synthesized by combining CPs and other types of functionalities, choosing the right combination for a sensor application is difficult but becomes important. 
  • 342
  • 07 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Adsorption Properties of Polysaccharide-Based Natural Polymer Hydrogels
The pollution and scarcity of freshwater resources are global problems that have a significant influence on human life. It is very important to remove harmful substances in the water to realize the recycling of water resources. Hydrogels have recently attracted attention due to their special three-dimensional network structure, large surface area, and pores, which show great potential for the removal of pollutants in water. In their preparation, natural polymers are one of the preferred materials because of their wide availability, low cost, and easy thermal degradation. However, when it is directly used for adsorption, its performance is unsatisfactory, so it usually needs to be modified in the preparation process. 
  • 480
  • 24 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Adhesives and Adhesion Mechanism
Adhesives are a preferred choice for binding solid wood and wood composites based on wood strips, chips, fibers, strands, and veneer for manufacturing engineered wood products (EWPs), such as laminated veneer lumber (LVL), laminated strand lumber (LSL), oriented strand board (OSB), cross-laminated timber (CLT), plywood, particle board, medium density fiberboard (MDF), and high-density fiberboard.
  • 1.2K
  • 07 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Additive Manufacturing for Antimicrobial Materials
3D Printing, also known as fused filament fabrication (FFF), continues to open new routes to the production of high-performance and complex structures with enhanced properties and dynamic shapes that are unattainable via conventional fabrication methods. 
  • 760
  • 23 Jun 2021
Topic Review
ABC-Type Linear Triblock Terpolymers
This entry aims to cover the most recent advances regarding the synthesis of linear ABC-type triblock terpolymers by RAFT polymerization, as well as their self-assembly properties in aqueous solutions. RAFT polymerization has received extensive attention, as it is a versatile technique, compatible with a great variety of functional monomers and reaction conditions, while providing exceptional and precise control over the final structure, with well-defined side-groups and post-polymerization engineering potential. Linear triblock terpolymers synthesis can lead to very interesting novel ideas, since there are countless combinations of stimuli/non-stimuli and hydrophilic/hydrophobic monomers that someone can use. One of their most interesting features is their ubiquitous ability to self-assemble in different nanostructures depending on their degree of polymerization (DP), block composition, solubilization protocol, internal and external stimuli. 
  • 626
  • 26 May 2021
Topic Review
4D Printing Technologies
3D printing has played a crucial role in the last decades as an innovative technology for tissue and organ fabrication, patient-specific orthoses, drug delivery, and surgical planning. However, biomedical materials used for 3D printing are usually static and unable to dynamically respond or transform within the internal environment of the body. These materials are fabricated ex situ, which involves first printing on a planar substrate and then deploying it to the target surface, thus resulting in a possible mismatch between the printed part and the target surfaces. The emergence of 4D printing addresses some of these drawbacks, opening an attractive path for the biomedical sector. By preprogramming smart materials, 4D printing is able to manufacture structures that dynamically respond to external stimuli. Despite these potentials, 4D printed dynamic materials are still in their infancy of development. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) could push these technologies forward enlarging their applicability, boosting the design space of smart materials by selecting promising ones with desired architectures, properties, and functions, reducing the time to manufacturing, and allowing the in situ printing directly on target surfaces achieving high-fidelity of human body micro-structures. 
  • 1.1K
  • 29 Jul 2022
Topic Review
3D Printing Technologies in Dentistry
3D-printing application in dentistry not only enables the manufacture of patient-specific devices and tissue constructs, but also allows mass customization, as well as digital workflow, with predictable lower cost and rapid turnaround times.
  • 838
  • 16 Sep 2022
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