Quantitative stress and damage mapping in multiple network elastomers using a single mechanophore.

ABSTRACT: Recently developed scissile mechanochemical probes provide powerful tools for direct visualization of the stress and damage behaviors of polymeric materials. However, simultaneous mapping of both stress and damage fields using a single mechanophore remains challenging. While widely used reversible ring-opening mechanophores (e.g., spiropyran and rhodamine derivatives) effectively report stress levels, they poorly correlate with microscopic damage evolution. In this study, we demonstrate that rhodamine-based mechanophores embedded in multiple network elastomers can simultaneously map both stress distribution and network damage. Although initial loading-induced damage does not immediately alter fluorescence responses, accumulated damage manifests as delayed activation and diminished intensit

SUBMITTER: Sun P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12627683 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature