Supercooled Sodium Acetate Solutions for Stimuli-Responsive Material Applications
Additional Funding Sources
This project is supported by the American Chemical Society Project SEED Program.
Presentation Date
7-2019
Abstract
This study aims to address the issue of plastic pollution within the ocean and everyday environment by creating a reusable, stimuli-responsive material to replace single use plastic. Sodium acetate was chosen for this project because of its nucleative crystallization process within common every-day reusable heat packs. When activated by a trigger nucleation point, or induced with a seed crystal, the supercooled sodium acetate solution solidifies and instantaneously generates heat during the phase change process; The proces can then be reset by melting the crystalline sodium acetate in order to turn it back to its original, malleable solution. By adding solidifying but flexible materials (such as hemp, loose fiberglass strands, starches, and fiberglass sheets..) into the sodium acetate trihydrate solution, or enveloping the latter solution with such, a stimuli-responsive material may be able to take the form of many objects, be sanitized properly, and someday replace hundreds of products with just one sheet. This study has found that sodium acetate trihydrate is most stable at approximately 35mL/30g to 50mL/30g, and allows for further solidifying improvement.
Supercooled Sodium Acetate Solutions for Stimuli-Responsive Material Applications
This study aims to address the issue of plastic pollution within the ocean and everyday environment by creating a reusable, stimuli-responsive material to replace single use plastic. Sodium acetate was chosen for this project because of its nucleative crystallization process within common every-day reusable heat packs. When activated by a trigger nucleation point, or induced with a seed crystal, the supercooled sodium acetate solution solidifies and instantaneously generates heat during the phase change process; The proces can then be reset by melting the crystalline sodium acetate in order to turn it back to its original, malleable solution. By adding solidifying but flexible materials (such as hemp, loose fiberglass strands, starches, and fiberglass sheets..) into the sodium acetate trihydrate solution, or enveloping the latter solution with such, a stimuli-responsive material may be able to take the form of many objects, be sanitized properly, and someday replace hundreds of products with just one sheet. This study has found that sodium acetate trihydrate is most stable at approximately 35mL/30g to 50mL/30g, and allows for further solidifying improvement.
Comments
W87