The degradation of polymeric materials is recognized as one of the goals to be fulfilled for the sustainable economy. In this study, a novel methodology was presented to synthesize multiple highly cross-linked polymers (i.e., hydrogels) through amine-thiol scrambling under mild conditions. Amine-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-NH₂) was reacted with the representative conjugate acceptors to synthesize hydrogels in organic and aqueous solutions, respectively. The materials above exhibited high water-swelling properties, distributed porous structures, as well as prominent mechanical strengths. It is noteworthy that the mentioned hydrogels could be degraded efficiently in hours to release the original coupling partner, which were induced by ethylene diamine at ambient temperature through amine-amine metathesis. The recovered PEG-NH₂ reagent could be employed again to regenerate hydrogels. Due to the multiple architectures and functions in polymeric synthesis, degradation and regeneration, a new generation of “smart” materials is revealed.

聚合物材料的降解被认为是可持续经济要实现的目标之一。在这项研究中，提出了一种在温和条件下通过胺-硫醇加扰合成多种高度交联聚合物（即水凝胶）的新方法。端胺聚乙二醇 (PEG-NH ₂) 与代表性的共轭受体反应，分别在有机和水溶液中合成水凝胶。上述材料表现出高的水膨胀性能、分布的多孔结构以及突出的机械强度。值得注意的是，上述水凝胶可以在数小时内有效降解以释放原始偶联伴侣，这是由乙二胺在环境温度下通过胺-胺复分解诱导的。回收的 PEG-NH ₂试剂可再次用于再生水凝胶。由于聚合物合成、降解和再生中的多种结构和功能，新一代的“智能”材料被揭示出来。