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Taking dynamic covalent chemistry out of the lab and into reprocessable industrial thermosets

Nature Reviews Chemistry volume 9, pages 144–158 (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

Dynamic covalent chemistry (DCC) allows the development of thermally (re)processable and recyclable polymer networks, which is a highly attractive feature for new generations of thermoset materials. However, despite a surge in academic interest wherein soon almost any imaginable DCC platform may have been applied in a thermoset formulation, dynamic or reversible covalent polymer networks have so far found only few industrial applications. This Review provides a perspective on the main strategies for the application of DCC in the design and development of bulk thermoset materials, and it presents some of the key hurdles for their industrial implementation. The polymer design strategies and associated chemistries are viewed from the perspective of how ‘close to market’ their development pathway is, thus providing a roadmap to achieve high-volume breakthrough applications.

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Fig. 1: Overview of the thermal reprocessing pathways for thermoplastic and thermoset polymers below and above their degradation temperature.
Fig. 2: Overview of the three distinct strategies for the design of DCC-thermosets that will be discussed in this Review.
Fig. 3: Native DCC-thermosets that can be obtained through catalyst (cat.) doping and stoichiometry fine tuning in traditional thermosets, together with promising chemistries.
Fig. 4: Overview of disruptive DCC-thermosets obtained from combining existing bulk chemicals.
Fig. 5: Disruptive DCC-thermosets obtained from new compounds.
Fig. 6: Overview of the preparation of hybrid DCC-thermosets wherein a reactive DCC-comonomer is used in an existing thermoset formulation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express their gratitude to all the experts who provided valuable insights and perspectives that greatly enriched this Review: G. Bouquet (principal research scientist at Trinseo in Terneuzen), M. Guerre (CNRS Researcher at Université de Toulouse), L. Imbernon (R&D engineer at Carpenter Co. Wetteren), R. Sijbesma (full professor at TU Eindhoven), A. Slark (Professorial Fellow at the University of Sheffield), P. Taynton (CEO at Mallinda Inc.), F. G. Tournilhac (Research Director at C3M in CNRS and ESPCI Paris-PSL) and T. Xie (Qiushi Chair Professor at Zhenjiang University in China). F.E.D.P would like to thank the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (CiMaC project — grant agreement no. 101021081).

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  1. Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    Stephan Maes, Nezha Badi & Filip E. Du Prez

  2. Laboratory of Organic Synthesis, Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    Johan M. Winne

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Maes, S., Badi, N., Winne, J.M. et al. Taking dynamic covalent chemistry out of the lab and into reprocessable industrial thermosets. Nat Rev Chem 9, 144–158 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-025-00686-7

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