First example of a non-toxic thermochromic polymer material-based on a novel mechanism

作者：Seeboth Arno^*; Loetzsch Detlef; Ruhmann Ralf

来源：Journal of Materials Chemistry C, 2013, 1(16): 2811-2816.

DOI：10.1039/c3tc30094c

Until now, all thermochromic materials have contained at least one toxic or carcinogenic component which is a major shortcoming for their application especially in medical or food technology products. This paper describes the development of the first non-toxic and non-carcinogenic thermochromic polymer material. The material consists of the biopolymer poly(lactic acid) (PLA), a natural dye of the anthocyanidine class, a gallate derivative and a fatty acid. The origin of the observed thermochromic effect is a conformational change of the polymer backbone which reversibly triggers the formation of polymer-dye complexes. Accordingly thermochromism represents an immanent property of the novel polymer material. The presented results establish a novel mechanism to realize the visualization of temperature changes in a way detectable by the human eye without any kind of auxiliary and provide a new approach for the development of thermochromic materials.

• 出版日期2013