Supramonomers for controllable supramolecular polymerization and renewable supramolecular polymeric materials

Abstract

Supramolecular polymerization and supramolecular polymeric materials have attracted a great deal of attention over the past three decades. Traditional methods for fabricating supramolecular polymers and materials mainly focus on the self-assembly of building units, including the noncovalent polymerization of covalent monomers and the noncovalent cross-linking of linear polymers. Lately, we come up with a novel concept of supramonomer, which refers to a monomer that is fabricated by noncovalent interactions and is able to undergo covalent polymerization or noncovalent polymerization. Since then, plenty of supramolecular polymers and supramolecular polymeric materials have been successfully constructed through the polymerization of supramonomers. In this trend article, we will introduce the recent progress of supramolecular polymerization and supramolecular polymeric materials based on supramonomers. Firstly, we will focus on controllable supramolecular polymerization, including controllable covalent polymerization and promoted noncovalent polymerization. Secondly, we will summarize renewable supramolecular polymeric materials on the basis of supramonomers, including degradable materials, self-healing materials, and recyclable materials. It is highly anticipated that this trend article will enrich the methodology of supramolecular polymerization and open new avenues for fabricating supramolecular polymeric materials with tailor-made properties.