INS9-0075
Visualizing strain and warning of damage from proteins to metals
Topic
S9. Polymer Technology for Sustainability
When and Where
Oct 1, 2026
10:45 - 11:10
Room 201
Session Chairs
Jeung Gon KIM
Presenter(s)
Joshua Grolman (Technion)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Predicting damage prior to catastrophic failure remains one of the biggest challenges for many materials we depend on for safety. Current methods like piezoresistors are sensitive but not scalable, whereas mechanophores are limited from low-strain applications and require material-specific chemistry. Here, we adopt a universal approach, developing a mechanophore-laden epoxy paint and applied it on 6061 aluminum, correlating increases in bending strain and fluorescence of the epoxy layer with slip lines in the aluminum. The sensitivity depended on network architecture, with increased branching demonstrating higher colorimetric sensitivity in not only single-event three-point bending, but more importantly fatigue damage in the elastic regime as low as 2.5%. These findings shed light on optimization strategies for mechanical transduction through polymers and heterointerfaces, and demonstrate the wide-scale feasibility of mechanophoric paint to enhance safety and reduce unnecessary waste for structural materials.
