Hydrogels Stretch 21x - May Find Application Inside Humans & Robots

Hydrogels aren't new to bioengineers. The highly absorbant gels, being flexible, have been used in bioengineering & medical applications for a long time now; but these gels haven't been very stretchable and often break when stretched to 1.2 times their original size. However, the engineering teams at Harvard University, Seoul National University, and Duke University joined hands to address this issue to develop a new kind of tough, synthetic hydrogels that stretch up to 21x their original size and can recover.

[caption id="attachment_42925" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Image Credit: Jeong-Yun Sun/Harvard University[/caption]

The researchers reported the successful synthesis of new hydrogels from polymers forming ionically and covalently crosslinked networks. Though the gel contains over 90% water, they can be stretched several times without causing a rupture, exhibiting fracture energies of ~9,000?J?m^?2.. The researchers attribute the strength and toughness of the new gel to two factors - <em>crack bridging by the network of covalent crosslinks, and hysteresis by unzipping the network of ionic crosslinks</em>.

These new gels can be used to replace the human cartilage, as artificial muscles and even in robotics. Check out further coverage on following sources-

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