High-Performance Nanomaterials Formed by Rigid Yet Extensible Cyclic Beta-Peptide Polymers

Abstract

Organisms have evolved biomaterials with an extraordinary convergence of high mechanical strength, toughness, and elasticity. In contrast, synthetic materials excel in stiffness or extensibility, and a combination of the two is necessary to exceed the performance of natural biomaterials. We bridge this materials property gap through the side-chain-to-side-chain polymerization of cyclic beta-peptide rings. Due to their strong dipole moments, the rings self-assemble into rigid nanorods, stabilized by hydrogen bonds. Displayed amines serve as functionalization sites, or, if protonated, force the polymer to adopt an unfolded conformation. This molecular design enhances the processability and extensibility of the biopolymer. Molecular dynamics simulations predict stick-slip deformations dissipate energy at large strains, thereby, yielding toughness values greater than natural silks.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 05, 2018
Accession Number
AD1100795

Entities

People

  • Christopher R. So
  • Daniel E Barlow
  • John Iii L. Kulp
  • Kathryn Wahl
  • Kenan P. Fears
  • Manoj K. Kolel-veetil
  • Noam Bernstein
  • Robert A. Latour
  • Thomas D. Clark
  • Xianfeng Li

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Amino Acids
  • Carbon Nanotubes
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemistry
  • Materials Laboratories
  • Materials Processing
  • Materials Science
  • Mechanical Properties
  • Mechanics
  • Modulus Of Elasticity
  • Molecular Dynamics
  • Nanotechnology
  • Peptides
  • Polymeric Films
  • Polymers
  • Proteins
  • Self Assembly

Readers

  • Mechanical Engineering/Mechanics of Materials.
  • Nanocomposite Materials Science
  • Quantum Chemistry