A Biomimetic “Salting Out—Alignment—Locking” Tactic to Design Strong and Tough Hydrogel
University of British Columbia · National Institute of Standards and Technology · +2 more institutions
Abstract
Abstract Recently, hydrogel‐based soft materials have demonstrated huge potential in soft robotics, flexible electronics as well as artificial skins. Although various methods are developed to prepare tough and strong hydrogels, it is still challenging to simultaneously enhance the strength and toughness of hydrogels, especially for protein‐based hydrogels. Herein, a biomimetic “salting out—alignment—locking” tactic (SALT) is introduced for enhancing mechanical properties through the synergy of alignment and the salting out effect. As a typical example, tensile strength and modulus of initially brittle gelatin hydrogels increase 940 folds to 10.12 ± 0.50 MPa and 2830 folds to 34.26 ± 3.94 MPa, respectively, and…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 30.82
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 61
Authors
5- XSXia Sun
University of British Columbia
- YMYimin Mao
National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST Center for Neutron Research, University of Maryland, College Park
- ZYZhengyang Yu
University of British Columbia
- PYPu Yang
University of British Columbia
- FJFeng JiangCorresponding
University of British Columbia
Topics & keywords
- Self-healing hydrogels
- Materials science
- Gelatin
- Toughness
- Soft robotics
- Ultimate tensile strength
- Soft materials
- Composite material