Tamper-Proof Bolt Seal Materials Using Multilayered Shape Memory Polymers

PolymerPlus proposes a SBIR program to develop and commercialize multilayered polymer films with shape memory properties, as a tamper-proof low-cost bolt seal and plastic seal anti-tamper device. The technological foundation for this innovation includes using two or more commercial polymers to produce multilayered films with thermal, humidity, or optical shape memory properties capable of undergoing a stimuli induced shape change (such as embossed shapes, structures or messages) over large areas. The conventional bolt seal materials offer very limited tamper-proof capability allowing illicit entry into cargo containers leading to contraband and counterfeit products. The existing bolt seals are fairly easy to counterfeit due to presence of obvious markers/information on the seals. Development of SMPs at PolymerPlus will demonstrate embedding invisible, custom printable messages on the bolt seals or plastic seals. The encoded information will only be revealed under specific external stimulus conditions with exposure to temperature, light or moisture. Revealed information can easily be scanned by electronic scanner or a smartphone.