Oppositely charged polyelectrolytes form tough, self-healing, and rebuildable hydrogels

Abstract

A series of tough polyion complex hydrogels is synthesized by sequential homopolymerization of cationic and anionic monomers. Owing to the reversible interpolymer ionic bonding, the materials are self-healable under ambient conditions with the aid of saline solution. Furthermore, self-glued bulk hydrogels can be built from their microgels, which is promising for 3D/4D printing and the additive manufacturing of hydrogels.

Keywords: hydrogels; polyion complexes; rebuildability; self-healing; tough.