A Degradable and Recyclable Photothermal Conversion Polymer

作者:Xu, Xiao-Qi; Wang, Zhen; Li, Ruiting; He, Yonglin; Wang, Yapei*
来源:Chemistry - A European Journal, 2018, 24(39): 9769-9772.
DOI:10.1002/chem.201801654

摘要

Decomposition and repolymerization of conjugated polymers offer great promise for developing recyclable photothermal conversion materials, which yet remain challenging. Herein, a crosslinked conjugated polymer based on a dynamic covalent bond of Schiff base is developed. This polymer possesses photothermal conversion efficiency as high as 90.4%. Decomposition of the polymer under specialized conditions is corroborated by various characterizations. The kinetics study is also investigated to understand this degradation process. Furthermore, those decomposed species can be repolymerized back to conjugated polymers which possess the same photothermal conversion efficiency as the pristine polymer. Such a degradable and recyclable photothermal polymer is successfully used as a heat source for photothermal-electrical conversion to generate Seebeck voltage under either near infrared (NIR) irradiation or solar illumination.