Highly Stretchable, Strain-Sensitive, and Ionic-Conductive Cellulose-Based Hydrogels for Wearable Sensors

• Published in: Polymers Vol. 11; no. 12; p. 2067
• Main Authors: Tong, Ruiping, Chen, Guangxue, Tian, Junfei, He, Minghui
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 11.12.2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Acids; Acrylic acid; Acrylics; Biopolymers; Cellulose; Copolymerization; Fourier transforms; Human motion; Hydrogels; Mechanical properties; Motion perception; Natural polymers; Ratios; Reagents; Scanning electron microscopy; Sensitivity; Sensors; Spectrum analysis; Stretchability; Tensile strain; Wearable computers; Wearable technology; United States > US; China; Germany; strain sensitivity; wearable sensors; cellulose-based hydrogels; ionic conductivity; stretchability
• ISSN: 2073-4360; 2073-4360
• DOI: 10.3390/polym11122067

To extend the applications of natural polymer-based hydrogels to wearable sensors, it is both important and a great challenge to improve their mechanical and electrical performance. In this work, highly stretchable, strain-sensitive, and ionic-conductive cellulose-based hydrogels (CHs) were prepared by random copolymerization of allyl cellulose and acrylic acid. The acquired hydrogels exhibit high stretchability (~142% of tensile strain) and good transparency (~86% at 550 nm). In addition, the hydrogels not only demonstrate better sensitivity in a wide linear range (0%-100%) but also exhibit excellent repeatable and stable signals even after 1000 cycles. Notably, hydrogel-based wearable sensors were successfully constructed to detect human movements. Their reliability, sensitivity, and wide-range properties endow the CHs with great potential for application in various wearable sensors.