Developments in Shape Memory Polymeric Materials

Shape memory polymers (SMPs) are the class of self-repairing and intelligent materials that have received significant attention from both industry and academia. SMP materials are attractive substitutes to metals because of their flexibility, bio-compatibility, low cost, easy manufacturing and programming together with wide scope of modifications. SMPs have wide spectrum of possible applications in the fields of high performance textiles, self-repairing plastic components in vehicles, biomedical devices, etc. The present review mainly highlights the recent progress in synthesis, characterization, evaluation, proposed applications and future outlook of SMPs and related composites.