Hydrogen-bonded poly(vinyl alcohol)-boehmite composites exhibiting excellent shape memory properties

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) networks cross-linked by inorganic nanofillers-boehmite (AlOOH) nanowires via strong hydrogen bonding was prepared by a facile strategy. These PVA-AlOOH composites displayed significantly enhanced mechanical and thermal properties due to the excellent mechanical property and high heat resistant of AlOOH nanowires, as well as the strong hydrogen bonding formed between PVA and AlOOH. Interestingly, it was worth mentioning that the PVA-AlOOH composites exhibited excellent shape memory behavior. The strong hydrogen bonding between PVA matrix and AlOOH nanowires acted as the hard segments to maintain the permanent shape, while the weak one between PVA chains served as switching segments to fix the temporary shape and recover to the permanent shape. This physical cross-linked system provided a simple and efficient strategy to obtain smart shape memory materials.