High strain epoxy shape memory polymer

Epoxy polymers represent a recently emerged class of thermoset shape memory polymers with superior thermo-mechanical endurance and excellent processability. However, the strains at break are typically low for epoxy shape memory polymers. This severely limits their potential applications. In this article, we report a two component epoxy-amine shape memory polymer system with tunable T-g (between 40 degrees C and 80 degrees C) and excellent shape memory properties in terms of shape fixity, shape recovery ratios, and cycling stability. Importantly, its values of strain at break above Tg and at the Tg peak reach 111% and 212%, respectively. We anticipate that such a high strain epoxy system will significantly broaden the opportunities for shape memory device applications.