Abstract Self-healing polymers based on the novel damage management concept were introduced several years ago. Since then different concepts have been successfully developed. However, the analysis and characterization of the self-healing process represents still a significant challenge, in particular for the quantification of scratch healing. Consequently, the comparability of the reported healing efficiencies of different polymers (materials) is often not provided. Within the variety of different characterization methods, different parameters like defect-area, length and width are utilized for the determination of the healing efficiency; however, the precise quantification is still problematic. For this reason, the present study focuses on two different methods, the mechanical analysis with the scratch tester MST3 and the optical analysis using laser scanning microscopy (LSM). For this purpose, a previously reported metallopolymer was damaged mechanically with an indenter and optically with a laser, respectively. Both types of defects were analyzed with the two characterization methods. By this manner, 3D images of the defects could also be obtained. The step-wise healing enabled a detailed analysis of the healing behavior of the polymer. Noteworthy, the optical analysis provided a high comparability enabling a precise quantification of the self-healing efficiency. The user-independent evaluation is crucial. As a consequence, a MATLAB® script was developed, which processes the data of the LSM measurements. Hereby, the data set and the microscope image are processed simultaneously and provide a combined result leading finally to the visualization (3D image) and quantification of the healing process.

中文翻译：

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一种量化聚合物划痕愈合的新方法

摘要 基于新型损伤管理概念的自修复聚合物在几年前被引入。从那时起，成功地开发了不同的概念。然而，自我修复过程的分析和表征仍然是一个重大挑战，特别是对于划痕愈合的量化。因此，通常不提供所报告的不同聚合物（材料）愈合效率的可比性。在各种不同的表征方法中，利用缺陷面积、长度和宽度等不同参数来确定愈合效率；然而，精确的量化仍然存在问题。因此，本研究侧重于两种不同的方法，使用划痕测试仪 MST3 进行机械分析，使用激光扫描显微镜 (LSM) 进行光学分析。为此，先前报道的金属聚合物分别用压头机械损坏和用激光光学损坏。两种类型的缺陷都用两种表征方法进行了分析。通过这种方式，也可以获得缺陷的 3D 图像。逐步愈合能够详细分析聚合物的愈合行为。值得注意的是，光学分析提供了高度的可比性，能够精确量化自愈效率。独立于用户的评估至关重要。因此，开发了一个 MATLAB® 脚本，用于处理 LSM 测量的数据。特此，