Issue 28, 2022

Recent advances in multi-mechanism design of crack-resistant hydrogels

Abstract

For conventional hydrogels, the phenomenon of crack generation and propagation caused by high-stress concentration is ubiquitous. However, this phenomenon is unfavorable in many applications, such as wearable electronics, tissue engineering, and tunable adhesion. Fortunately, many hydrogels that can suppress crack growth during deformation and maintain the original mechanical properties during deformation, called crack-resistant hydrogels, have been published. Herein, the state-of-the-art of crack-resistant hydrogels is comprehensively reviewed. Starting from the principle of designing a crack-resistant hydrogel, we first survey the relevant crack-resistant strategies. The latest crack-resistant hydrogels are then categorized according to their crack-resistant mechanisms (including energy dissipation at the molecular level, multiscale structure, crack pinning, crack deflection, and sliding of chain), and their crack-resistant processes are described in detail. Furthermore, we summarize the current challenges and make an outlook for crack-resistant hydrogels, which might lead to substantial progress in the future design and development of these high-performance materials.

Graphical abstract: Recent advances in multi-mechanism design of crack-resistant hydrogels

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
16 May 2022
Accepted
13 Jun 2022
First published
15 Jun 2022

Soft Matter, 2022,18, 5153-5165

Recent advances in multi-mechanism design of crack-resistant hydrogels

Y. Huang, D. Yu, C. Fu, R. Guo, C. Wu and Y. Lin, Soft Matter, 2022, 18, 5153 DOI: 10.1039/D2SM00632D

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements