Multifunctional Hydrogels from Mechanistic Design to Practical Applications

Synthetic polymer hydrogels as soft-wet materials, consisting of three-
dimensional cross-linked networks and a large amount of water (50–90%),
possess many unique properties such as swelling/deswelling, stimuli-
responsiveness, shock absorption, and low sliding friction, making them as
potential excellent biomimetics for substitution of soft living materials.
However, conventional hydrogels often suffer from weak mechanical
properties, which greatly limit their extensive uses for many other
applications. In this talk, we will present different design strategies to
prepare tough and multifunctional hydrogels with unconventional polymer
network architectures and extraordinary properties. Guided by our design
principle, we will demonstrate different hydrogels with high mechanical
properties, self-healing, actuation, antifouling, and/or wound healing to
mimic cartilages, artificial muscles, and mussel-inspired glues. In parallel,
molecular simulations will be presented to given atomic-details of structure-
properties relationship. Finally, several unique aspects for future
development of tough hydrogels will be suggested.