Polymer Networks with Embedded Reactivity

The physical limits of polymer networks are determined by the physical limits of its constituent molecular strands: the energy a strand absorbs before breaking, the force at which it breaks, and the extension it achieves at that force. In many case, polymer strands are typically viewed as structureless entropic springs. In this talk, we discuss the consequences of treating strands as being both structurally active and chemically reactive, and of viewing macroscopic mechanical events such as crack propagation as a moving chemical reaction vessel, in which molecular strands undergo conformational and covalent chemical reactions that are tied to their specific molecular structure.