Self-healing polymers developed using sugar

02-Jan-15

Self-healing polymers developed by Marek Urban from Clemson University uses a special ingredient -Sugar. The method has some distinct advantages over others. The new polymer can repair itself from ingredients in the air. The revised chemistry needs only carbon dioxide and water vapor, thus resembling plant behavior of carbon fixation during the photosynthesis cycle. The technology that Urban is developing is also part of a demonstration project under the Department of Defense’s Corrosion Prevention and Control Program. A polyurethane coating incorporating additives that enable the self-repairing mechanisms is being applied to large hangar doors at the Corpus Christi Army Depot in Texas. Richard Lampo, a materials engineer with the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, is helping to evaluate Urban’s concepts for self-repairing coatings for use in highly corrosive environments. “Corrosion of infrastructure and equipment costs the military millions of dollars each year,” Lampo said. “Coatings are the first line of defense against corrosion, and a coating that repairs itself when damaged, thus maintaining a barrier to the effects of corrosion, could potentially equate to significant cost savings while maintaining a high level of mission readiness.”