The broad versatility of polymer foams has driven their industrial development in commodity usages and cutting-edge technologies seeking lightweight and multifunctionality. The downside of this booming production lies in the limited end-of-life options of their waste that poses significant environmental challenges and urges the development of circular alternatives. Building on recent advances in dynamic covalent polymer networks (DCPNs), one promising route lies in the activation or the incorporation of dynamic covalent bonds (DCBs) into polymer foams. Thermally induced topological rearrangements are thus enabled by dynamic exchange reactions, unlocking new functionalities. This concept gave rise to dynamic covalent polymer foams (DCPFs), a class of materials that provide recyclability without compromising the mechanical strength and the dimensional stability traditionally required for cellular materials. In line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), the emergence of these dynamic networks redefines the value chain of polymeric foams. Strategies for designing DCPFs are truly numerous, all drawing inspiration from the literature on dynamic exchange chemistry. However, a clear review of the strategies, processes, materials, and new functions is still missing. This review tends to fill this gap.

Polymers of intrinsic microporosity (PIMs) offer exceptional gas permeability but remain brittle and susceptible to physical aging, limiting their durability in separation applications. Here, we introduce a reconfigurable microporous polymer network that uniquely integrates permanent PIM microporosity with autonomous, intrinsic self-healing driven by imidazolium-based ionic motifs. Spirobisindane units generate the intrinsic free-volume architecture, while an imidazolium-containing polyamide ionene supplies dynamic ionic and hydrogen-bonding interactions that reorganize under mild activation. Incorporation of imidazolium-based ionic liquids further tunes cohesion, mobility, and densification, enabling the network to relax, re-associate, and retain microporosity without structural collapse. Through a comprehensive multiscale approach combining spectroscopy, scattering, thermal and mechanical characterization with all-atom molecular dynamics and density functional theory calculations, we elucidate how ionic content, as a single control parameter that reshapes free-volume distributions, modulates local coordination environments, and governs relaxation and healing kinetics. At intermediate ionic loadings, the networks achieve rapid, repeatable self-healing while maintaining CO2 selectivity, demonstrating an optimal balance between segmental mobility and structural integrity. By establishing how hierarchical ionic interactions couple structure, dynamics, and transport in microporous ionene networks, this work provides generalizable design rules for adaptive soft-matter systems that require simultaneous mechanical resilience, reconfigurability, and selective gas transport.

A method for the fabrication of low-scattering liquid crystal (LC) photonic devices, including a Fresnel zone plate (FZP) and grating, was proposed. The core of this method lies in doping the alignment layer with a photoinitiator, followed by the generation of polymer brushes via surface-initiated polymerization (SIP) technology. This technology effectively fixes the tilt angle of LC molecules under saturation voltage, resulting in the formation of a stable structure characterized by the alternating distribution of twisted nematic and vertically aligned regions within the twist nematic (TN) type of LC cells. Compared with conventional methods that rely on polymer networks to stabilize the tilt angles of LC molecules, this approach significantly mitigates scattering caused by refractive index mismatches between the polymer network and the LC material. Owing to its low scattering property, the fabricated binary FZP achieved a diffraction efficiency as high as 35.3%, and the haze is only 8.6%. The fabricated amplitude grating has a contrast ratio as high as 625 and a haze of only 14.1%. The proposed method enables the rapid and efficient production of low-scattering LC devices, demonstrating great application potential in photonic device fabrication.

In the innate immune system, natural killer (NK) cells are effector lymphocytes which control several tumor types and microbial infections by limiting disease spread and tissue damage. With tumor cell killing abilities, with no priming or prior activation, NKs are potential anti-cancer therapies. In clinical practice, NKs are used in intravenous injections as they typically grow as suspension, similar to other blood cells. In this study, we designed a novel and effective biomaterial-based platform for NK cell delivery, which included in situ NK cell encapsulation into three-dimensional (3D) biocompatible polymeric scaffolds for potential anti-cancer treatments. Depending on physical cross-linking between an alginate (ALG) polymer and a divalent cation, two natural polymers (gelatin (GEL) and hyaluronic acid (HA)) penetrated into pores and generated an inter-penetrating hydrogel system with improved mechanical properties and stability. After extensive characterization of hydrogels, NK cells were encapsulated inside using our in situ gelation procedure to provide a biomimetic microenvironment.

Polyelectrolyte brushes (PEBs) are promising coatings for reducing ice adhesion and regulating water freezing at interfaces, yet direct measurements of nonfrozen water retention at subzero temperatures remain scarce. Here, we investigate the freezing behavior of water confined in poly([2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethylammonium) (PMETA) brushes with chloride, iodide, and sulfate counterions using a custom-built low-temperature attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy system. Furthermore, we quantify the fraction of water that was present within the brush that does not freeze as well as the changes in polymer volume fraction within the brush as a function of temperature. Spectroscopic analysis of water vibrational modes reveals that PMETA brushes retain 25-35 vol. % water even at -60 °C, providing direct evidence of substantial water confinement in charged polymer networks. These findings advance the fundamental understanding of interfacial water behavior in PEBs and suggest molecular design strategies for engineering anti-icing and cryo-lubricating surface coatings.

The inherent trade-off between performance and safety in traditional liquid and all-solid-state electrolytes poses significant challenges to the commercialization of electrochromic devices. To address these issues, this study developed a high-performance semi-interpenetrating polymer network ionic gel electrolyte made of poly(1,3-dioxolane) and poly(methyl methacrylate). Using a lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide-trifluoroacetic acid co-initiation system, the precursor undergoes efficient in situ ring-opening polymerization and spontaneous curing at room temperature, without requiring external stimuli (e.g., heating or light irradiation) or solvent evaporation. This approach ensures complete wetting of the electrode surface, streamlining the fabrication process and facilitating scalable device fabrication. The gel electrolyte achieves an impressive ionic conductivity of up to 3.32 mScm-1. When paired with a specially designed asymmetric viologen compound, the electrochromic device exhibits superior overall performance, characterized by high optical contrast and exceptional cycling stability, even outperforming conventional organic liquid-electrolyte systems. This work presents a synergistic strategy that integrates spontaneous in situ gelation with molecular engineering, offering a promising pathway toward next-generation electrochromic devices.

Multiple polymer networks, such as double-network elastomers comprising a sacrificial and a matrix network, exhibit exceptional mechanical resilience, commonly attributed to the formation of an extended damage zone before a crack can grow. However, the microscopic mechanisms underlying their toughness remain poorly understood. Here, we combine advanced light scattering methods and molecular dynamics simulations to explore the microscopic relaxation dynamics and stress redistribution at the polymer strand scale of single-network and double-network elastomers under uniaxial loading. Dynamic light scattering experiments show that microscopic rearrangements and bond breaking events are localized near the crack tip in single networks, readily causing the crack to advance. In contrast, double networks exhibit delocalized microscopic rearrangements well ahead of and not directly correlated with crack propagation, enabling the dissipation of energy over broader regions and timescales. Numerical simulations of the damage zone show that bond breaking in the matrix network of double networks leads to widespread stress redistribution, mitigating catastrophic damage localization. This enhanced ability to redistribute stress in a nonlocal manner allows a much larger extension before localized macroscopic failure occurs, explaining the superior toughness of double networks. Our findings identify early, delocalized bond breaking events combined with more efficient dissipation pathways through enhanced microscopic rearrangements as the key microscopic mechanisms responsible for the outstanding toughness and extensibility of multiple elastomer networks.

Highly stable “polymer network” of self-supported nickel-phosphorus-based catalytic electrodes at ampere-scale for overall seawater splitting

A high-performance chlorogenic acid-allicin-porphyrin-carboxymethyl chitosan/sodium alginate composite film: Synergizing potent antibacterial protection with innate biocompatibility for sustainable fruit preservation.

Investigation of material properties of thermoplastic and thermoset polymer materials at cryogenic temperatures using molecular dynamics

Interpenetrating network hydrogels based on soy protein isolate and sanxan: Structure, mechanical properties, and freeze-thaw stability.

Development and assessment of antimicrobial films based on geraniol-loaded ZnO/pectin-carrageenan nanocomposite for sustainable packaging applications.

Uniformly swelling Eu(NTA)3Phen into PS microspheres through an EGDMA-crosslinked polymer networks: Towards high EQE fluorescence and high sensitivity IVD

A high-performance polymer-modified bentonite liner for sustainable landfills: from systematic optimization to field validation.

Inspired by naturally occurring tubular structures, hollow fibers offer unique advantages for a wide range of contemporary applications, such as a high surface-area-to-volume ratio, a low density, and directional mass transport. Although polymeric materials, including conjugated polymer networks, have shown promise for the fabrication of these architectures, their synthesis typically lacks design modularity and often requires sacrificial templates or metal catalysts, limiting their overall sustainability. In this study, we present a new molecular design strategy for metal-free conjugated hollow fibers that can self-assemble into a spongy monolith. Selected monomers undergo rapid Chichibabin-type condensation to form fully conjugated aromatic networks, which simultaneously self-assemble into uniform submicron hollow fibers that, in turn, become entangled to form monoliths. This transformation occurs via single-step, one-pot synthesis without the need for metals, templates, or post-processing. The designed sponge exhibits efficient light absorption, a high surface area, and excellent mass transfer, allowing it to be employed for multiple functions, including oil absorption, the photocatalytic decolorization of dyes, the capture of gas-phase iodine, and thermal insulation. This bottom-up design represents a versatile and sustainable platform for the engineering of hollow-fiber-based materials with broad utility for energy, environmental, and biomedical applications.

Construction of a robust solid electrolyte interphase layer via in-situ polymerization of a halogen-based crosslinked polymer network electrolyte for Li–S batteries

Superelastic and highly sensitive conductive hydrogel sensor enabled by spatially confined assembly of MXene within bacterial cellulose network.

Single-ionic conductive quasi-solid-state electrolyte membranes based on nematic liquid crystal polymer network

Insights into the interaction of DHA/EPA-containing phospholipids with modified whey protein isolate (mWPI) and chitosan quaternary ammonium salt (CQAS) to form microgel.

Advanced polymer membranes exhibit competitive performance in gas separation. However, rationally designing a polymer membrane with high gas separation performance and structural robustness simultaneously remains challenging. Herein, we present a microzone interfacial polymerization approach to reconstruct the polymer network through the rearrangement of attached functional groups, forming a heterogeneous structure with a crumpled morphology. Unlike common crumpled membranes with homogeneous structures, the heterogeneous structure with a discovered microphase separation endows the membrane with independent and cooperative dual-function regions. The peaks, with more amides as CO2-philic sites, are functionalized as fast CO2 transport channels, whereas the stress release effect via the deformation process maintains a high free volume. Valleys, with more rigid phenyls, demonstrate both enhanced CO2 diffusion and compaction resistance. The cooperative effects of dual-function regions significantly improve the structural robustness, and the optimized membrane exhibits an approximately 300% increase in CO2 permeance and CO2/N2 selectivity compared with its homogeneous counterparts under 1.0 MPa, which is also one order of magnitude greater than that of state-of-the-art membranes. This approach offers a potential pathway for developing more durable polymer membranes suited for harsh environments, which could expand the range of gas separations feasible with membrane technology.