Strong and tough fibrous hydrogels reinforced by multiscale hierarchical structures with multimechanisms

Xiao Guo; Xinyu Dong; Huajian Gao; Wei Zhai

doi:10.1126/sciadv.adf7075

journal article Jan 13, 2023

Strong and tough fibrous hydrogels reinforced by multiscale hierarchical structures with multimechanisms

Xiao Guo

Xinyu Dong

Huajian Gao

Wei Zhai

Science Advances Vol. 9 No. 2 · American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

View at Publisher Save 10.1126/sciadv.adf7075

Abstract

Tough natural materials such as nacre, bone, and silk exhibit multiscale hierarchical structures where distinct toughening mechanisms occur at each level of the hierarchy, ranging from molecular uncoiling to microscale fibrillar sliding to macroscale crack deflection. An open question is whether and how the multiscale design motifs of natural materials can be translated to the development of next-generation biomimetic hydrogels. To address this challenge, we fabricate strong and tough hydrogel with architected multiscale hierarchical structures using a freeze-casting–assisted solution substitution strategy. The underlying multiscale multimechanisms are attributed to the gel’s hierarchical structures, including microscale anisotropic honeycomb–structured fiber walls and matrix, with a modulus of 8.96 and 0.73 MPa, respectively; hydrogen bond–enhanced fibers with nanocrystalline domains; and cross-linked strong polyvinyl alcohol chains with chain-connecting ionic bonds. This study establishes a blueprint of structure-performance mechanisms in tough hierarchically structured hydrogels and can inspire advanced design strategies for other promising hierarchical materials.

Topics

No keywords indexed for this article. Browse by subject →

References

45

[1]

10.1016/j.cej.2020.127544

[2]

10.1002/adma.201504152

[3]

Hydrogel machines

Xinyue Liu, Jiangang Liu, Shaoting Lin et al.

Materials Today 10.1016/j.mattod.2019.12.026

[4]

Printing ferromagnetic domains for untethered fast-transforming soft materials

Yoonho Kim, Hyunwoo Yuk, Ruike Zhao et al.

Nature 10.1038/s41586-018-0185-0

[5]

10.1038/ncomms14230

[6]

10.1126/science.1214804

[7]

10.1002/adma.200800534

[8]

10.1002/1521-4095(200104)13:7<485::aid-adma485>3.0.co;2-t

[9]

10.1021/ja408547g

[10]

Double‐Network Hydrogels with Extremely High Mechanical Strength

J.P. Gong, Y. Katsuyama, T. Kurokawa et al.

Advanced Materials 10.1002/adma.200304907

[11]

10.1038/nature11409

[12]

10.1002/marc.201800883

[13]

10.1021/acsami.8b13038

[14]

10.1038/s41467-019-10560-y

[15]

10.1126/sciadv.aau8528

[16]

10.1002/adma.201704937

[17]

10.1073/pnas.1903019116

[18]

10.1021/acsami.7b14900

[19]

10.1039/c4sm01039f

[20]

H. Zhang Ice Templating and Freeze-Drying for Porous Materials and Their Applications (Wiley-VCH 2018).

[21]

10.1126/sciadv.aat7223

[22]

10.1002/adma.201801934

[23]

Stretchable and fatigue-resistant materials

Chunping Xiang, Zhengjin Wang, Canhui Yang et al.

Materials Today 10.1016/j.mattod.2019.08.009

[24]

10.1038/s41586-021-03212-z

[25]

10.1002/adfm.202203610

[26]

10.1002/adfm.202105264

[27]

10.1002/adma.202102011

[28]

10.1016/j.compositesb.2018.12.023

[29]

10.1016/j.cartre.2021.100048

[30]

10.1016/j.comptc.2016.12.041

[31]

10.1002/adfm.202103818

[32]

10.1016/s0032-3861(96)00773-2

[33]

10.1016/j.apsusc.2009.03.038

[34]

10.1038/ncomms7649

[35]

10.1016/j.jmps.2019.06.018

[36]

10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c01088

[37]

10.1016/j.actbio.2012.10.011

[38]

10.1002/jbm.820110309

[39]

Multi-scale multi-mechanism design of tough hydrogels: building dissipation into stretchy networks

Xuanhe Zhao

Soft Matter 10.1039/c3sm52272e

[40]

10.1002/app.29572

[41]

10.1002/adfm.201300483

[42]

10.1016/j.jmps.2020.103893

[43]

10.1016/0266-3538(95)00141-7

[44]

E. J. Barbero Finite Element Analysis of Composite Materials (CRC Press ed. 2 2013). 10.1201/b16295

[45]

10.1016/j.carbon.2020.12.088

Cited By

224

Preparation of Silk Fibroin Hydrogel Assisted by Photo‐Crosslinking and Electrospinning: Mechanical, Slow Release, and Antibacterial Properties

Shu Qiu, Siwen Zhang · 2025

Journal of Applied Polymer Science

Phase‐Separated Patch With Dual‐Functional Interfaces Enables Antiadhesive Tension‐Free Hernia Repair

Shenglin Li, Shuhan Wang · 2025

Advanced Healthcare Materials

Metrics

224

Citations

45

References

Details

Published: Jan 13, 2023
Vol/Issue: 9(2)

Authors

X

Xiao Guo

Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore 117575, Singapore.

X

Xinyu Dong

Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore 117575, Singapore.

H

Huajian Gao

School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, College of Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore.; Institute of High Performance Computing, A*STAR, Singapore 138632, Singapore.

W

Wei Zhai

Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore 117575, Singapore.

Cite This Article

Xiao Guo, Xinyu Dong, Huajian Gao, et al. (2023). Strong and tough fibrous hydrogels reinforced by multiscale hierarchical structures with multimechanisms. Science Advances, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adf7075

Strong and tough fibrous hydrogels reinforced by multiscale hierarchical structures with multimechanisms

You May Also Like