Triple physical cross-linking cellulose nanofibers-based poly(ionic liquid) hydrogel as wearable multifunctional sensors

Dong Fu; Yang Xie; Lili Zhou; Lili Zhang; Ting Zheng; Jun Shen

doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121572

Triple physical cross-linking cellulose nanofibers-based poly(ionic liquid) hydrogel as wearable multifunctional sensors

Carbohydr Polym. 2024 Feb 1:325:121572. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121572. Epub 2023 Nov 11.

Authors

Dong Fu¹, Yang Xie², Lili Zhou³, Lili Zhang⁴, Ting Zheng⁵, Jun Shen⁶

Affiliations

¹ College of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, PR China; Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences, Institute of Advanced Technology, Harbin 150029, PR China.
² Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences, Institute of Advanced Technology, Harbin 150029, PR China.
³ Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences, Intelligent Manufacturing Institute, Harbin 150001, PR China.
⁴ College of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, PR China. Electronic address: zhanglili1984@hrbeu.edu.cn.
⁵ College of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, PR China. Electronic address: tingzheng@hrbeu.edu.cn.
⁶ College of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, PR China; School of Civil and Resources Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, PR China. Electronic address: shenjun@hrbeu.edu.cn.

PMID: 38008484
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121572

Abstract

A novel triple physical cross-linking poly(ionic liquid) hydrogel, composed of poly(acrylamide-co-dodecyl methacrylate-co-1-vinyl-3-methyluracil-imidazolium chloride)/cellulose nanofibers-Ca²⁺ (PADV/CNFs-Ca²⁺), was synthesized through micellar-copolymerization followed by a solvent-soaked procedure. The synergistic interactions in polymer network (i.e. the hydrophobic association of dodecyl methacrylate moiety in surfactant micelles, the hydrogen bondings between imidazolium monomer segments and other monomer segments in polymers, and the ionic coordination between Ca²⁺ and -COO^- on cellulose nanofibers surface) endowed the hydrogel with excellent mechanical properties, including high strength (754 kPa of tensile strength and 1905 kPa of compressive strength), outstanding stretchability (1963 %), elastic modulus (56.5 kPa) and remarkable mechanical durability (200 cycles with 500 % deformations and 100 cycles at 50 % compression strain). Besides, this hydrogel exhibited other advantages, such as satisfied conductivity (28.7 mS/cm), high strain/pressure/temperature-sensitive behavior, precise and stable signal transmission, varying degrees of antibacterial activity, and biocompatibility. Owing to the exceptional comprehensive performance, the hydrogel was then assembled as a multifunctional sensor to monitor the joint motion, vocal cord vibration, tactile sensation and body temperature with remarkable sensitivity in real time. This work offered a new strategy for the fabrication of durable, biocompatible, antibacterial and conductive materials for wearable multifunctional electronic devices.

Keywords: Cellulose nanofibers; Comprehensive properties; Multifunctional sensor; Poly(ionic liquid) hydrogel; Triple physical cross-linking network.