Skin-inspired cellulose conductive hydrogels with integrated self-healing, strain, and thermal sensitive performance

• Published in: Carbohydrate polymers 2020-07, Vol.240, p.116360-116360, Article 116360
• Main Authors: Pang, Jinhui, Wang, Lixin, Xu, Yawen, Wu, Miao, Wang, Meng, Liu, Yuxiang, Yu, Shitao, Li, Lu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cellulose - chemistry; Conductive hydrogel; Electric Conductivity; High strength and toughness; Humans; Hydrogels - chemical synthesis; Hydrogels - chemistry; Hydrogels - pharmacology; Self-healing; Skin - chemistry; Strain sensor; Temperature; Thermal sensitivity; Wound Healing - drug effects
• ISSN: 0144-8617; 1879-1344
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2020.116360

•Cellulose conductive hydrogels with self-healing, strain, and thermal sensitive performance were successfully fabricated.•Strength and toughness of the hydrogels were increased 20.8 and 63-fold respectively.•The gel sensors could monitor of both obvious and subtle motion of human body with high sensitivity and good repeatability.•The gel sensors also possessed good thermal sensitivity in the relaxed and stretch state. In this study, a versatile cellulose conductive hydrogels with outstanding mechanical properties, rapid self-healing performance, and excellent thermal sensitivity were successfully fabricated. The tensile strength and toughness of the gels gradually increased to 249 kPa and 1.57 MJ/m3, respectively, and the healing efficiency of the hydrogels quickly reached 96.3% within 60 min. Importantly, the hydrogels exhibited a broad strain window (0–2066%) with a gauge factor ranging from 0.22 to 6.7, which could monitor of both obvious and subtle motion of the human body with high sensitivity and good repeatability. Moreover, the sensors also possessed good thermal sensitivity in the 0% and 400% state, and the response of the gel sensors increased from 8.3 to 87.9 when the temperature was increased from 35 to 85 °C. This study provides inspiration for the development of biocompatible and multifunctional cellulose-based wearable sensors with excellent mechanical, strain and temperature sensing and self-healing properties.