State-of-the-art analytical methods for assessing dynamic bonding soft matter materials

Dynamic bonding materials are of high interest in a variety of fields in material science. The reversible nature of certain reaction classes is frequently employed for introducing key material properties such as the capability to self-heal. In addition to the synthetic effort required for designing such materials, their analysis is a highly complex--yet important--endeavor. Herein, we critically review the current state of the art analytical methods and their application in the context of reversible bonding on demand soft matter material characterization for an in-depth performance assessment. The main analytical focus lies on the characterization at the molecular level.

Rheological and structural studies on heat-induced gelation of concentrated skim milk

Heat-induced gelation of milk was studied using both rheological and structural techniques. The sample was a conventional skim milk, concentrated with an ultrafiltration membrane, which formed gels when heated at appropriate pH. We investigated some factors that are considered to affect the gelation, such as concentration, pH and rennet treatment. The gelation process was monitored with a high precision oscillatory shear rheometer and the structure of gels was evaluated with quasi-elastic laser light scattering. From these results the gelation and phase separation behaviour were determined. By combining the results for different concentrations a phase diagram was obtained, which indicated that skim milk had a two-phase region on the higher temperature side. The effects of pH and rennet treatment were also evaluated with the aid of this phase diagram. The results were discussed on the basis of concepts of the phase behaviour of polymers, which were successfully developed in polymer physics.