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Zhou Z, Joshi VC, Guo Y, Xiang T, Wang Z, Sun CC. How elastically flexible can molecular crystals be? - a new record. Chem Sci 2025; 16:5797-5802. [PMID: 40123691 PMCID: PMC11927576 DOI: 10.1039/d5sc01260k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2025] [Accepted: 03/07/2025] [Indexed: 03/25/2025] Open
Abstract
The elastic strain limit, which quantifies the elastic flexibility of a material, is critical for technological applications of functional materials in a number of fields. Although the elastic flexibility of molecular crystals has been recognized, the extent of elastic flexibility of such materials remains to be defined. Here, we report a molecular crystal, i.e., form I polymorph of celecoxib (CEL), exhibiting exceptional elastic flexibility with an elastic strain of at least 8.70%. The record high elastic strain is accompanied by low Young's modulus (E = 3.18 ± 1.01 GPa) and hardness (H = 39.8 ± 15.6 MPa), as determined by single crystal nanoindentation, along with the high plasticity of the bulk powder observed in in-die Heckel analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengzheng Zhou
- NMPA Key Laboratory for Safety Evaluation of Cosmetics, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, Department of Hygiene Inspection & Quarantine Science, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University Guangzhou Guangdong 510515 China
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Vikram Chandrashekhar Joshi
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Yiwang Guo
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Tianyi Xiang
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Zijian Wang
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Changquan Calvin Sun
- Pharmaceutical Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
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Wang Z, Han W, Shi R, Han X, Zheng Y, Xu J, Bu XH. Mechanoresponsive Flexible Crystals. JACS AU 2024; 4:279-300. [PMID: 38425899 PMCID: PMC10900217 DOI: 10.1021/jacsau.3c00481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
Flexible crystals have gained significant attention owing to their remarkable pliability, plasticity, and adaptability, making them highly popular in various research and application fields. The main challenges in developing flexible crystals lie in the rational design, preparation, and performance optimization of such crystals. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental origins of crystal flexibility is crucial for establishing evaluation criteria and design principles. This Perspective offers a retrospective analysis of the development of flexible crystals over the past two decades. It summarizes the elastic standards and possible plastic bending mechanisms tailored to diverse flexible crystals and analyzes the assessment of their theoretical basis and applicability. Meanwhile, the compatibility between crystal elasticity and plasticity has been discussed, unveiling the immense prospects of elastic/plastic crystals for applications in biomedicine, flexible electronic devices, and flexible optics. Furthermore, this Perspective presents state-of-the-art experimental avenues and analysis methods for investigating molecular interactions in molecular crystals, which is vital for the future exploration of the mechanisms of crystal flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhihua Wang
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Wenqing Han
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Rongchao Shi
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Xiao Han
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Yongshen Zheng
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Jialiang Xu
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
- Collaborative
Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
| | - Xian-He Bu
- School
of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary
Science Center, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Nankai University, Tongyan Road 38, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
- Collaborative
Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering, Tianjin 300350, P. R. China
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Yu F, Pei Y, Zhang X, Ma J. Weathering and degradation of polylactic acid masks in a simulated environment in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and their effects on the growth of winter grazing ryegrass. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2023; 448:130889. [PMID: 36731322 PMCID: PMC9882953 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.130889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2022] [Revised: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to explosive growth in the production and consumption of disposable medical masks, which has caused new global environmental problems due to the improper disposal of these masks and lack of effective mask recycling methods. To reduce the environmental load caused by the inability of synthetic plastics to degrade, polylactic acid (PLA) masks, as a biodegradable environmentally friendly plastic, may become a solution. This study simulated the actual degradation process of new PLA masks in different environments by soaking them in various solutions for 4 weeks and explored the influence of the treated PLA fabric fibers on the growth of winter ryegrass. The results show that the weathering degradation of PLA fibers in water mainly occurs through the hydrolysis of ester bonds, and weathering leads to cheese-like and gully-like erosion on the surface of the PLA fiber fabric layer and finally to fiber fracture and the release of microplastics (MPs). The average number of MPs released within 4 weeks is 149.5 items/piece, the particle size is 20-500 µm (44%), and 63.57% of the MPs are transparent fibers. The outer, middle, and inner layers of weathered PLA masks tend to be hydrophilic and have lower mechanical strength. PLA fibers after different treatment methods affect the growth of winter ryegrass. PLA masks are undoubtedly a greener choice than ordinary commercial masks, but in order to confirm this, the entire degradation process, the final products, and the impact on the environment need to be further studied. In the future, masks may be developed to be made from more environmentally friendly biodegradable materials that can have good protecting effects and also solve the problem of end-of-life recycling. A SYNOPSIS: Simulation of the actual degradation process of PLA masks and exploration of the influence of mask degradation on the growth of winter ryegrass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Yu
- College of Marine Ecology and Environment, Shanghai Ocean University, No 999, Huchenghuan Road, Shanghai 201306, PR China
| | - Yizhi Pei
- College of Marine Ecology and Environment, Shanghai Ocean University, No 999, Huchenghuan Road, Shanghai 201306, PR China
| | - Xiaochen Zhang
- College of Marine Ecology and Environment, Shanghai Ocean University, No 999, Huchenghuan Road, Shanghai 201306, PR China
| | - Jie Ma
- Research Center for Environmental Functional Materials, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092, PR China.
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Liu H, Stephen Chan H, Zhang L, Lu Y, Li J, Li J, Li L, Zhou Z. The molecular mechanisms of plasticity in crystal forms of theophylline. CHINESE CHEM LETT 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cclet.2022.108057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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Li J, Huang Y, An Q, Li W, Li J, Liu H, Yang D, Lu Y, Zhou Z. Discovered two polymorphs and two solvates of lamotrigine-tolfenamic acid salt: Thermal behavior and crystal morphological differences. Int J Pharm 2022; 628:122310. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2022.122310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
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