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A variety of small poly(dimethyl siloxanes) were irradiated with γ-rays followed by the determination of the production of methane and molecular hydrogen and characterization of spectroscopic changes in the medium. The yields of methane was found to be about twice that of molecular hydrogen indicating that breakage of the C-Si bond occurs at a frequency comparable to the breakage of the C-H bond. Both yields slowly decrease with increasing molecular weight of the medium. The presence of oxygen decreases the yield of both gases suggesting radical precursors to methane and molecular hydrogen, presumably the methyl radical and H atom, respectively. Temperature gravimetric analysis and UV–visible spectroscopy both suggest the formation of higher molecular weight compounds with radiolysis, which agrees with bond loss and formation observed in infrared spectroscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wearable strain transducers are poised to transform the field of healthcare owing to the promise of personalized devices capable of real‐time collection of human physiological health indicators. For instance, monitoring patients' progress following injury and/or surgery during physiotherapy is crucial but rarely performed outside clinics. Herein, multifunctional liquid‐free ionic elastomers are designed through the volume effect and the formation of dynamic hydrogen bond networks between polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and weak acids (phosphoric acid, phytic acid, formic acid, citric acid). An ultra‐stretchable (4600% strain), highly conducting (10 mS cm−1), self‐repairable (77% of initial strain), and adhesive ionic elastomer is obtained at high loadings of phytic acid (4:1 weight to PVA). Moreover, the elastomer displayed durable performances, with intact mechanical properties after a year of storage. The elastomer is used as a transducer to monitor human motions in a device comprising an ESP32‐based development board. The device detected walking and/or running biomechanics and communicated motion‐sensing data (i.e., amplitude, frequency) wirelessly. The reported technology can also be applied to other body parts to monitor recovery after injury and/or surgery and inform practitioners of motion biomechanics remotely and in real time to increase convalescence effectiveness, reduce clinic appointments, and prevent injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, non-covalently functionalized graphene oxide (FGO) containing phosphorus and nitrogen was synthesized using dibenzyl N , N ′-diethyl phosphoramidite (DDP) via a single step process. Meanwhile, novel bio-based phosphorus containing vanillin epoxy resin (VPE) was made via a two-step process and used as a flame-retardant adhesive. Subsequently, FGO was dispersed in the epoxy resin matrix at different weight ratios as reinforcement for improving mechanical, thermal and flame-retardant properties of the resultant composite systems. Curing behavior of the VPE and FGO mixtures with 4,4′-diaminodiphenylsulfone (DDS) as the crosslinker was investigated using a Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC). Thermal and flame-retardant properties of the cured VPE/FGO nanocomposites were systematically investigated by Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Gas Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), Limited Oxygen Index (LOI), vertical burning test (UL-94), and cone calorimeter test. Results indicated that all VPE/FGO nanocomposites exhibited excellent thermal and flame-retardant properties. In particular, VPE with 9 wt% of FGO achieved the highest LOI value (29.1%) and passed the V-0 rating in the UL-94 test. Furthermore, cone calorimetry test showed that flame retardancy performance of the VPE and VPE/FGO composites significantly improved compared to vanillin epoxy control resin without phosphorus. The gaseous and high boiling pyrolysis products of VPE cured by DDS were collected and characterized by GC/MS to reveal their formation mechanisms. The char layers of the cued VPE showed a high oxidation resistance with intumescent structures. The combined barrier and quenching effects of the char layer imparted VPE with excellent flame retardancy. This study illustrated a promising approach for synthesizing mechanically strong, thermally-stable and environmentally-friendly flame-retardant bio-based composite resins. Image 1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]