Bioinspired Hydrogel-Polymer Hybrids with a Tough and Antifatigue Interface via One-Step Polymerization.

Hydrogel hybrids are one of the key factors in life activities and biomimetic science; however, their development and utilization are critically impeded by their inadequate adhesive strength and intricate process. In nature, barnacles can stick to a variety of solid surfaces firmly (adhesive strength above 300 kPa) using a hydrophobic interface, which inspires us to firmly combine hydrogels and polymers through introducing an adhesive layer. By spreading a hydrophobic liquid membrane directly, tough combination of a hydrogel and a polymer substrate could be achieved after one-step polymerization. The fracture energy of the hydrogel attached to the surface of polyvinyl chloride was up to 1200 J m-2 and the tensile strength reached 1.21 MPa. Furthermore, the adhesion samples with this method exhibit an antifatigue performance, having withstood large bends and twists. It should be pointed out that this approach can also be applied to a variety of complicated surfaces. This work may expand the application range of hydrogels and provides an inspiration for hydrogel adhesion.

Hydrogel with Ultrafast Self-Healing Property Both in Air and Underwater.

Self-healing hydrogels have a great potential application in 3D printing, soft robotics, and tissue engineering. There have been a large number of successful strategies for developing hydrogels that exhibit rapid and autonomous recovery. However, developing a gel with an excellent self-healing performance within several seconds is still an enormous challenge. Here, an ultrafast self-healing hydrogel based on an agarose/PVA double network (DN) is presented. The gel utilizing a dynamic borate bond exhibits 100% cure in strength and elongation after healing for 10 s in air, and this hydrogel shows an excellent self-healing property underwater as well. In addition, the agarose/PVA DN hydrogel exhibits a smart self-healing property for an in situ priority recovery, ensuring that the shape and the function are the same as those of the original one. With the combination of self-healing properties, such a hydrogel could be applied to a board range of areas.