Strain Field Self-Diagnostic Poly(dimethylsiloxane) Elastomers

Advanced applications, involving high risk mechanical systems, require to verify the in-service deformation level in order to assess their safety and reliability, providing information for repairing or replacing interventions. In the present work, a selfdiagnostic PDMS elastomer containing a supramolecular detection probe is proposed, enabling to identify the strain intensity in the polymeric matrix by fluorescence detection. Turn-on fluorescence represents an efficient, sensitive, simple and real time diagnostic tool to quantitatively detect high-strain regions for the mechanical monitoring of structural elements. The supramolecular complex – cross-linking the polymer’s chains – provides fluorescence response induced by strain even if present in a very low amount (10-6 mol kg-1), so completely preserving the mechanical characteristics of the matrix. The developed PDMS material is mechanically tested and the observed fluorescence field is correlated with that obtained by numerical simulations as well as by contactless measurements performed via the digital image correlation technique (DIC).