Fecha de publicación: 02/11/2024 Fuente: Journal of applied polymer Lugar: RESEARCH ARTICLE In this study, a highly sensitive strain sensor based on a MXene/BC double network hydrogel was prepared. The research focused on the preparation, structural characterization, and performance testing of the hydrogel and the strain sensor. The key findings of the study include improved mechanical strength, flexibility, and sensitivity of the hydrogel sensor, making it suitable for health monitoring and wearable devices.


Abstract
The limited strength and stability of conductive hydrogels greatly impede their practical applications in wearable devices. Therefore, a conductive double-network hydrogel with high strength, high toughness, and high stability was prepared by one-pot method in this paper. The rigid and flexible skeletons as well as the three-dimensional dense honeycomb lattice network structure endow the hydrogel with good strength. The reversible cross-linking synergistic effect between the rigid bacterial cellulose chains scaffolding uniformly dispersed Ti3C2 MXene nanosheets and the flexible acrylic acid chains doped with propylene glycol presents the hydrogel with excellent stability and elongation at break (862%). Consequently, a strain sensor based on the prepared hydrogel exhibits high sensitivity (GF = 1.28), rapid response (150 ms), and superior stability (over 2000 cycles) within a very wide strain range (5%–620%). Various strain signals generated by human activities are successfully detected by the presented strain sensor, which promises its broad applications in health monitoring.