Revitalizing poly(urea)s via disulfide reconfiguration.

ABSTRACT: Weak bonds are well-known to construct soft materials. Elaborating molecule-level self-assembly via supramolecular engineering could generate performance materials that exhibit high strength at mild temperatures. However, the entropy penalty of assembled materials, meanwhile, compromises robustness at elevated temperatures. Herein, we report that simply replacing two carbons with disulfide bonds in poly(urea)s enables unprecedented structural reconfigurability without trading off material robustness. Introducing disulfide bonds maintains the ordered urea-based H-bond assembly in bulk polymers while simultaneously suppressing secondary crystallization of these H-bonded arrays and offering secondary H-bonding sites by forming S─S·H─N interactions. This two-atom structural change revitalizes

SUBMITTER: Zong Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12802836 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature