CMC-Enabled PEDOT:PSS Film for High-Performance Electrochromic Material

Flexible, intelligent color-changing windows with excellent color-switching capability and fast response time rely significantly on conductive composite layers composed of electrochromic materials and flexible, transparent substrates. Herein, we developed a high-performance electrochromic film (CPC) with mechanical, humidity, and temperature insensitivity by coating sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-dispersed PEDOT:PSS onto a CA film. In the CPC system, CMC not only effectively enhances interfacial bonding and compatibility between the hydrophobic CA film and the hydrophilic PEDOT:PSS but also enables uniform and stable deposition of PEDOT:PSS on the CA film. As a result, the designed CPC demonstrates a high optical modulation capability (the transmittance changes from 60.1% to 3%) and a response time of 2 s. In addition, the CPC features the advantages of mechanical-, humidity-, and temperature-insensitive electrochromic distinctions, where it outputs the stable coloring efficiency with 100-time bending treatment, various temperatures, and humidity in an all-day outdoor environment. The developed CPC electrochromic film offers new insights into promoting the structural simplification and sustainability of electrochromic materials.