Backbone Editing of Natural Rubber for Sustainable Flexible Electronics
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore, 117543
- 2Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore, 117575
- 3School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
- 4Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Abstract
Sustainable electronics offer a path to reducing the environmental burden of electronic waste, but achieving closed-loop recyclability in flexible organic devices remains challenging because most stretchable substrates and elastomers are non-recyclable, petroleum-derived thermosets. Natural rubber ( cis -1,4-polyisoprene), a renewable and mechanically compliant biopolymer, is an attractive alternative for sustainable electronics, yet its chemical inertness has limited its use in advanced functional materials. Here we report a photoredox-catalyzed strategy for the selective functionalization of cis -1,4-polyisoprene, enabling modular installation of functional groups without crosslinking or degradation. This approach yields functional polyisoprene with luminescent and flame-retardant properties and, through dynamic ionic crosslinking, produces elastomers with tensile strengths up to 20 MPa and stretch ratios of 22. We further prepare a recyclable composite using functional natural rubber and PEDOT:PSS, stabilized by ionic interactions rather than permanent vulcanized networks, that retains mechanical and electrical performance over multiple recycling cycles. Its application in robotic motion sensing and electronic skin exemplifies a fundamental design principle for sustainable flexible electronics.
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BibTeX
@misc{zhang2026backbone,
title = {{Backbone Editing of Natural Rubber for Sustainable Flexible Electronics}},
author = {Zongnan Zhang and Linkun Liu and Luke Chang and Mengmeng Liu and Lin Cheng and Hua Zhong and Emmanuela Joshlin Singarimbun and Madina Turmagambetova and Ruofan Du and Jiong Lu and Wei Yu and Benjamin C. K. Tee and Yunyan Qiu},
howpublished = {ChemRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.26434/chemrxiv.15008802/v1},
url = {https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15008802/v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Backbone Editing of Natural Rubber for Sustainable Flexible Electronics
AU - Zongnan Zhang
AU - Linkun Liu
AU - Luke Chang
AU - Mengmeng Liu
AU - Lin Cheng
AU - Hua Zhong
AU - Emmanuela Joshlin Singarimbun
AU - Madina Turmagambetova
AU - Ruofan Du
AU - Jiong Lu
AU - Wei Yu
AU - Benjamin C. K. Tee
AU - Yunyan Qiu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/14
PB - ChemRxiv
DO - 10.26434/chemrxiv.15008802/v1
UR - https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15008802/v1
AB - Sustainable electronics offer a path to reducing the environmental burden of electronic waste, but achieving closed-loop recyclability in flexible organic devices remains challenging because most stretchable substrates and elastomers are non-recyclable, petroleum-derived thermosets. Natural rubber ( cis -1,4-polyisoprene), a renewable and mechanically compliant biopolymer, is an attractive alternative for sustainable electronics, yet its chemical inertness has limited its use in advanced functional materials. Here we report a photoredox-catalyzed strategy for the selective functionalization of cis -1,4-polyisoprene, enabling modular installation of functional groups without crosslinking or degradation. This approach yields functional polyisoprene with luminescent and flame-retardant properties and, through dynamic ionic crosslinking, produces elastomers with tensile strengths up to 20 MPa and stretch ratios of 22. We further prepare a recyclable composite using functional natural rubber and PEDOT:PSS, stabilized by ionic interactions rather than permanent vulcanized networks, that retains mechanical and electrical performance over multiple recycling cycles. Its application in robotic motion sensing and electronic skin exemplifies a fundamental design principle for sustainable flexible electronics.
ER -