Polyurethane-Grafted Graphene Oxide from Repurposed Foam Mattress Waste

 The second paper from our NSF funded project on polymer up cycling was recently published in RSC Advances! Read more about it here:

Polyurethane-grafted graphene oxide from repurposed foam mattress waste

This paper is part of a collaborative effort funded by the NSF ECO-CBET program, which brings 5 PIs from across disciplines together to address sustainability issues in plastics. Specifically we are studying ways to create value-added composites that have aqueous degradation pathways to mitigate microplastic formation. The team is composed of members from the following groups across campus: Stefanie Sydlik (Chemistry), Daphne Chen (ChemE), Kevin Noonan (Chemistry), Ryan Sullivan (Chemistry/ MechE), and Jerry Wang (CivE).

Early days while the project was still just a dream! Here I'm obtaining a PU mattress sample with lead author, (now) Dr. Walker Vickery, from CMU housing services in Prof. Wang's lab.

Functional Graphenic Materials as Scaffolds for Bone Regeneration

A new review from Team Sydlik came out in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine! The invited paper entitled "Functional graphenic materials, graphene oxide, and graphene as scaffolds for bone regeneration" details the next generation of graphenic materials and their perspective application towards bone regeneration. Functional graphenic materials (FGMs) are chemically modified graphenes that include moieties to assist in regeneration by enhancing cell-biomaterial interactions. These materials offer tunable properties and could be the next generation of bone implant. Read more about it in the full paper.

Therapeutic Methacrylates: Elegant in their Simplicity

Big news! Zoe's paper, "Covalently-controlled drug delivery via therapeutic methacrylic tissue adhesives" has been published in the Emerging Investigators issue of the Journal of Materials Chemistry Part B. Called "elegant in its simplicity" by one insightful reviewer (with whom I obviously agree), Zoe used a simple chemical transformation to turn superglue into a smart surgical adhesive. Zoe covalently attached over the counter pain relievers (Aspirin, Advil, and Benzocaine) to methacrylate groups and incorporated them into an approved cyanoacrylate surgical adhesive. The tether bond she used was designed to release the therapeutic at a pre-determined rate, based on the rate of the reaction with water in the environment, conveniently providing pain relief and sterile wound closure. You can read her full paper here! 

Bioinspired Polypeptide Graphene

Our latest paper was just published in Polymer International! Using a living polymerization technique, we successfully chemically modified graphite, or pencil lead, to give a new bioinspired graphene. We demonstrated good mechanical properties and an propensity for cell adhesion, suggesting the promise of this material as a scaffold for tissue regeneration. Good work, Annie and Brian! You can read the full paper here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pi.5375/full

Glowing cells growing happily on our magical bioinspired pencil lead

Increased Toughness and Excellent Electronic Properties in Polythiophenes

Today a new paper from the Sydlik Group appeared online in Advanced Electronic Materials! In collaboration with Prof. Genevieve Sauve at Case Western and Prof. Rick McCullough at Harvard, we synthesized and characterized a novel series of random copolymers of polythiophene. Unlike traditional electronics that are stiff and brittle, these plastics that conduct electricity were found to be exceptionally tough and flexible. This was as a result of the random incorporation of an unsubstituted thiophene into the polymer backbone. Further, these materials have excellent electronic properties, suggesting their potential for use in rollable, foldable electronics such as a portable solar cell. You can read the full paper here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aelm.201600316/full. This is just one example of how the concepts of polymer design have the potential transform our lives!

Image is the property of Advanced Electronic Materials & the Sydlik Group

In it for the Long Haul!

Today, Brian, Annie, and Prof. Sydlik's paper "In It for the Long Haul: The Cytocompatibility of Aged Graphene Oxide and Its Degradation Products" first appeared online in Advanced Healthcare Materials! The paper follows the cytocompatibility of graphene oxide as it degrades over time in an aqueous environment, mimicking the toxicity that would be experienced with implantation of graphene oxide device for tissue regeneration. We found graphene oxide to be degradable and biocompatible over almost a year, making it a promising candidate for next-generation biomaterials. You can read more about it here! http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adhm.201600745/full

This cool image  by Brian was almost cool enough to be cover art. They accepted us for an inside
cover, but we are holding out for the real deal!

Graphene Oxide as a Scaffold for Bone Regeneration

Today, the Sydlik Group's first paper, "Graphene Oxide as a Scaffold for Bone Regeneration" appeared online in WIRES Nanomedicine and Nanotechnology. The article is a review of literature investigating and discussing the potential of graphene oxide as a biomaterial for bone regeneration. With extensive research, we found that as long as care is taken to control the biocompatibility of the material, graphene oxide holds great potential due to its autodegradability and ease of chemical modification. We are actively working to transform graphene oxide into a degradable, cell instructive scaffold so this paper lays important groundwork for our continued investigations! You can read more here: http://wires.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WiresArticle/wisId-WNAN1437.html

Copyright WIRES Nanomedicine & Nanotechnology, from Zoe Wright and the Sydlik Group

The spot where we got the acceptance email for this paper. I was riding my bike over a mountain pass in Colorado :)