Stretchable, self-adhesive, and conductive hemicellulose-based hydrogels as wearable strain sensors

Lihui Zhao; Banxin Luo; Shishuai Gao; Yupeng Liu; Chenhuan Lai; Daihui Zhang; Wenxian Guan; Chunpeng Wang; Fuxiang Chu

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.137313

Stretchable, self-adhesive, and conductive hemicellulose-based hydrogels as wearable strain sensors

Int J Biol Macromol. 2024 Nov 6;282(Pt 6):137313. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.137313. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Lihui Zhao¹, Banxin Luo², Shishuai Gao³, Yupeng Liu⁴, Chenhuan Lai⁵, Daihui Zhang⁶, Wenxian Guan², Chunpeng Wang³, Fuxiang Chu³

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, National Engineering Laboratory for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu, China.
² Department of General Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Drum Tower Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210008, Jiangsu, China.
³ Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, National Engineering Laboratory for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu, China; Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, Jiangsu, China.
⁴ Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, National Engineering Laboratory for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu, China; Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: liuyplhs@163.com.
⁵ Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: lch2014@njfu.edu.cn.
⁶ Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, National Engineering Laboratory for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu, China; Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, Jiangsu, China. Electronic address: dhzhang@icifp.cn.

PMID: 39515690
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.137313

Abstract

Conductive hydrogels have recently gained impressive attention in flexible sensing. However, their low sensing limit and poor interface matching have raised great concern during the practical application. Therefore, incorporating excellent stretchability and adhesiveness into conductive hydrogel is highly desirable but still be a huge challenge. In this study, we synthesized composite hydrogels with desired properties by utilizing the synergistic role of hemicellulose (HC) and conductive two-dimensional material MXene. As a result, the synthesized hydrogels showed good self-adhesion (3.12 KPa on the skin), great stretchability (>1700 %), and satisfactory electrical conductivity. These multifunctional hydrogels operated as adaptable sensors, adeptly capturing the nuanced signals emanating from an array of human motions. They exhibited an expansive strain tolerance, swift reactivity, and an enhanced acuity in detecting even the slightest deformations (GF = 2.1). Our research provides new insights for creating stretchable, self-adhesive, and functional hydrogels for sensing applications.

Keywords: Hemicellulose; Hydrogel; Sensor.