Programmable Multi‐Responsive Nanocellulose‐Based Hydrogels With Embodied Logic
-
1.
California Institute of Technology
-
2.
Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology
-
3.
Universidade Federal do ABC
-
4.
Eindhoven University of Technology
Abstract
Programmable materials are desirable for a variety of functional applications that range from biomedical devices, actuators and soft robots to adaptive surfaces and deployable structures. However, current smart materials are often designed to respond to single stimuli (like temperature, humidity, or light). Here, a novel multi‐stimuli‐responsive composite is fabricated using direct ink writing (DIW) to enable programmability in both space and time and computation of logic operations. The composite hydrogels consist of double‐network matrices of poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) or poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and sodium alginate (SA) and are reinforced by a high content of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) (14 wt%) and nanofibers (CNF) (1 wt%). These composites exhibit a simultaneously tunable response to external stimuli, such as temperature, pH, and ion concentration, enabling precise control over their swelling and shrinking behavior, shape, and mechanical properties over time. Bilayer hydrogel actuators are designed to display bidirectional bending in response to various stimuli scenarios. Finally, to leverage the multi‐responsiveness and programmability of this new composite, Boolean algebra concepts are used to design and execute NOT, YES, OR, and AND logic gates, paving the way for self‐actuating materials with embodied logic.
Copyright and License
© 2024 The Author(s). Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Funding
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung. Grant Number: P500PT_203197
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo. Grant Numbers: 2021/00380-4, 2021/10037-5, 2022/10706-7, 2023/04970-6
- National Science Foundation. Grant Number: 2308575
- Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE-JU)
Contributions
B.A., G.S., T.M., G.N., S.T., and C.D. designed the study. B.A. conducted the experiments, processed the data, and wrote the manuscript with input from all coauthors. All authors reviewed and commented on the manuscript.
Acknowledgement
The authors thank C. Fox for helping with the operation of the universal testing machine, E. Boschi for the AFM analysis, A. Huch for the SEM and OM imaging, and M. Champeau for helpful discussions. S.T. and B.A. acknowledge funding from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) (Grant Nos. #2021/00380-4, #2021/10037-5, #2022/10706-7, and #2023/04970-6). G.S., G.N., and B.A. acknowledge funding from the Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft, State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI), and from the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE-JU) (Project Bio-LUSH, Grant No. 101112476 to EP). T.M. acknowledges support from the Swiss National Science Foundation (P500PT_203197/1). C.D. acknowledges support from the US National Science Foundation (Grant No. 2308575).
Files
| Name | Size | Download all |
|---|---|---|
|
md5:1cf1a743609caf5c17348773a57df97e
|
10.2 MB | Preview Download |
|
md5:d914ad8cfab26b11d5b0fb4636648497
|
13.5 MB | Download |
Additional details
- Swiss National Science Foundation
- P500PT_203197
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- 2021/00380‐4
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- 2021/10037‐5
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- 2022/10706‐7
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- 2023/04970‐6
- National Science Foundation
- 2308575
- Available
-
2024-09-26Published online
- Publication Status
- In Press