Issue 37, 2020

Chameleon skin-inspired polymeric particles for the detection of toluene vapor

Abstract

Inspired by the structural coloring in nature, especially the crystalline ordering and responsive characteristics of those found in chameleon skins, artificial photonic materials for sensor applications were fabricated. Cholesteric liquid crystals (CLCs) were employed in the templated synthesis of polymeric particles with periodic structures that allow visible light to undergo Bragg reflection and their response was tested against volatile organic compounds (VOCs). We demonstrate that the particles were responsive against toluene with detection limits on the order of 100 ppm. Such sensitivity was shown to be achieved due to the critical steps followed during the CLC-templated synthesis of particles that resulted in the storage of elastic energy in the anisotropic glassy polymer network. In addition, the design of particle-assisted sensor chips that allow easy integration into wearable optical devices for reliable, continuous and online tracking of VOC concentrations is presented. These results proved that sensors developed from the CLC-templated particles can be used multiple times without a significant loss of sensitivity and offered rapid, sensitive and battery-free detection.

Graphical abstract: Chameleon skin-inspired polymeric particles for the detection of toluene vapor

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 Jul 2020
Accepted
12 Aug 2020
First published
13 Aug 2020

Soft Matter, 2020,16, 8683-8691

Chameleon skin-inspired polymeric particles for the detection of toluene vapor

D. I. Avşar and E. Bukusoglu, Soft Matter, 2020, 16, 8683 DOI: 10.1039/D0SM01289K

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements