Shibaev AV, Smirnova ME, Kessel DE, Bedin SA, Razumovskaya IV, Philippova OE. Remotely Self-Healable, Shapeable and pH-Sensitive Dual Cross-Linked Polysaccharide Hydrogels with Fast Response to Magnetic Field.
NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021;
11:1271. [PMID:
34066084 PMCID:
PMC8151316 DOI:
10.3390/nano11051271]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The development of actuators with remote control is important for the construction of devices for soft robotics. The present paper describes a responsive hydrogel of nontoxic, biocompatible, and biodegradable polymer carboxymethyl hydroxypropyl guar with dynamic covalent cross-links and embedded cobalt ferrite nanoparticles. The nanoparticles significantly enhance the mechanical properties of the gel, acting as additional multifunctional non-covalent linkages between the polymer chains. High magnetization of the cobalt ferrite nanoparticles provides to the gel a strong responsiveness to the magnetic field, even at rather small content of nanoparticles. It is demonstrated that labile cross-links in the polymer matrix impart to the hydrogel the ability of self-healing and reshaping as well as a fast response to the magnetic field. In addition, the gel shows pronounced pH sensitivity due to pH-cleavable cross-links. The possibility to use the multiresponsive gel as a magnetic-field-triggered actuator is demonstrated.
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