Tough, Bioinspired Transparent Glass‐Ceramics

Tough and strong bioinspired nanocomposites with interfacial cross-links.

Strength and toughness are two mechanical properties that are generally mutually exclusive but highly sought-after in the design of advanced composite materials. There has only been limited progress in achieving both high strength and toughness in composite materials. However, the fundamental underlying mechanics remain largely unexplored, especially at the nanoscale. Inspired by the lamellar s...

It ’ s tough to be strong : Advances in bioinspired structural ceramic - based materials

Biological materials science focuses on the structure–function–property–processing paradigm, a common theme in materials science. However, synthesis and growth of natural materials is quite different from that of synthetic materials. Almost all biological systems follow six fundamental design principles.1–3 • Water. Although essential for biological systems, synthetic materials typically avoid ...

Transparent, elastomeric and tough hydrogels from poly(ethylene glycol) and silicate nanoparticles.

The structures and mechanical properties of both physically and covalently cross-linked nanocomposite hydrogels made from poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and silicate nanoparticles (Laponite RD) are investigated. Injectable nanocomposite precursor solutions can be covalently cross-linked via photopolymerization. The resulting hydrogels are transparent and have interconnected pores, high elongation ...

Highly tough and transparent layered composites of nanocellulose and synthetic silicate.

A highly tough and transparent film material was prepared from synthetic saponite (SPN) nanoplatelets of low aspect ratios and nanofibrillar cellulose. The nanofibrillar cellulose was chemically modified by topological surface oxidation using 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl (TEMPO) as a catalyst. Both synthetic SPN nanoplatelets and TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanofibrils (TOCNs) have abunda...

Tough times call for tough decisions.