Validation of an Accurate and Expedient Initial Rates Method for Characterizing Mechanophore Reactivity

Bicyclo[2.2.0]hexene: A Multicyclic Mechanophore with Reactivity Diversified by External Forces

Polymer mechanochemistry has been established as an enabling tool in accessing chemical reactivity and reaction pathways that are distinctive from their thermal counterparts. However, eliciting diversified reaction pathways by activating different constituent chemical bonds from the same mechanophore structure remains challenging. Here, we report the design of a bicyclo[2.2.0]hexene (BCH) mechanophore to leverage its structural simplicity and relatively low molecular symmetry to demonstrate this idea of multimodal activation. Upon changing the attachment points of pendant polymer chains, three different C-C bonds in bicyclo[2.2.0]hexene are specifically activated via externally applied force by sonication. Experimental characterization confirms that in different scenarios of polymer attachment, the regioisomers of BCH undergo different activation reactions, entailing retro-[2+2] cycloreversion, 1,3-allylic migration, and retro-4π ring-opening reactions, respectively. Control experiments with small-molecule analogues reveal that the observed diversified reactivity of BCH regioisomers is possible only with mechanical force. Theoretical studies further elucidate that the differences in the positions of substitution between regioisomers have a minimal impact on the potential energy surface of the parent BCH scaffold. The mechanochemical selectivity between different C-C bonds in each constitutional isomer is a result of selective and effective coupling of force to the aligned C-C bond in each case.

Mechanochemical Reactivity of a 1,2,4-Triazoline-3,5-dione-Anthracene Diels-Alder Adduct

Force-responsive molecules that produce fluorescent moieties under stress provide a means for stress-sensing and material damage assessment. In this work, we report a mechanophore based on Diels-Alder adduct TAD-An of 4,4'-(4,4'-diphenylmethylene)-bis-(1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione) and initiator-substituted anthracene that can undergo retro-Diels-Alder (rDA) reaction by pulsed ultrasonication and compressive activation in bulk materials. The influence of having C-N versus C-C bonds at the sites of bond scission is elucidated by comparing the relative mechanical strength of TAD-An to another Diels-Alder adduct MAL-An obtained from maleimide and anthracene. The susceptibility to undergo rDa reaction correlates well with bond energy, such that C-N bond containing TAD-An degrades faster C-C bond containing MAL-An because C-N bond is weaker than C-C bond. Specifically, the results from polymer degradation kinetics under pulsed ultrasonication shows that polymer containing TAD-An has a rate constant of 1.59×10-5  min-1 , while MAL-An (C-C bond) has a rate constant of 1.40×10-5  min-1 . Incorporation of TAD-An in a crosslinked polymer network demonstrates the feasibility to utilize TAD-An as an alternative force-responsive probe to visualize mechanical damage where fluorescence can be "turned-on" due to force-accelerated retro-Diels-Alder reaction.

Naphthopyran molecular switches and their emergent mechanochemical reactivity

Naphthopyran molecular switches undergo a ring-opening reaction upon external stimulation to generate intensely colored merocyanine dyes. Their unique modularity and synthetic accessibility afford exceptional control over their properties and stimuli-responsive behavior. Commercial applications of naphthopyrans as photoswitches in photochromic ophthalmic lenses have spurred an extensive body of work exploring naphthopyran-merocyanine structure-property relationships. The recently discovered mechanochromic behavior of naphthopyrans has led to their emergent application in the field of polymer mechanochemistry, enabling advances in the design of force-responsive materials as well as fundamental insights into mechanochemical reactivity. The structure-property relationships established in the photochemical literature serve as a convenient blueprint for the design of naphthopyran molecular force probes with precisely tuned properties. On the other hand, the mechanochemical reactivity of naphthopyran diverges in many cases from the conventional photochemical pathways, resulting in unexpected properties and opportunities for deeper understanding and innovation in polymer mechanochemistry. Here, we highlight the features of the naphthopyran scaffold that render it a powerful platform for the design of mechanochromic materials and review recent advances in naphthopyran mechanochemistry.