Boronic acids as molecular inks for surface functionalization of polyvinyl alcohol substrates

Boronic acids are proposed to be used as molecular inks. This allows chemical modification of the surface of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and PVA-related materials with boronic acid-containing molecules through boronate esterification using marker pen applicators. The resulting materials exhibit functional properties, such as fluorescence, halochromism, chemical sensing abilities, and water repellency.