Work

A mechanically enhanced electroactive hydrogel for 3D printing using a multileg long chain crosslinker

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: Electroactive hydrogels (EAHs) are receiving attention in soft robotics. 3D printing makes EAHs even more attractive, due to the diversification and elaboration of actuations. However, 3D printing needs a large amount of photoinitiator for faster printing, which makes the printed hydrogels so brittle that they cannot produce large scale 3D printing. Here, we developed a 3D printable EAH based on poly(3-sulfopropyl acrylate, potassium salt) (PSPA) using glycidyl methacrylated hyaluronic acid (GMHA) as a mechanically enhancing multileg long chain (MLLC) crosslinker. The MLLC crosslinking improved the stretchability of the PSPA-based hydrogel to 49% from 28%, while maintaining the same level of electroactivity. Additionally, the fracture toughness of the PSPA-based hydrogel remarkably increased from 11 to 40 J m −2 with crosslinking by the MLLC. Using the mechanically enhanced EAH, i.e. the GMHA–PSPA EAH, the 3D printing of elaborate structures, e.g. ‘Leaning Tower of Pisa’ and a hand, and their electroactuation were successfully demonstrated.

Source: Smart Materials and Structures

DOI: 10.1088/1361-665x/ab325d

Authors: Yong-Woo Kang, Jaesung Woo, Hae-Ryung Lee, Jeong-Yun Sun

Institution: Seoul National University

Language: English

Topic: Hydrogels: synthesis, properties, applications

Subfield: Molecular Medicine

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: bronze