LAUSR

Hydrogels are important for stretchable and wearable multifunctional sensors, but their application is limited by their low mechanical strength and poor long-term stability. Herein, a conductive organohydrogel with 3D honeycomb structure was prepared by integrating carbon nanotube (CNT) and carbon black (CB) into poly(vinyl alcohol)/glycerol (PVA/Gly) organohydrogel. Such nanocomposite organohydrogel is built on physical crosslinking network formed by the hydrogen bonds among PVA, glycerol and water. CNT and CB had an add-in synergistic impact on the mechanical and electrical performances of PVA/Gly organohydrogel due to the distinct aspect ratios and geometric shapes. The prepared organohydrogel integrated with tensile strength of 4.8 MPa, toughness of 15.93 MJ m-3 and flexibility with an elongation at break up to 640%. The organohydrogels also showed good anti-freezing feature, long-term moisture retention, self-healing, and thermoplasticity. Sensors designed from those organohydrogels displayed high stretching sensitivity to tensile strain and temperature, with a gauge factor of 2.1 within a relatively broad strain range (up to ~600% strain), temperature coefficient of resistance of -0.935 %·oC-1 and long-term durability. The sensors could detect full range human physiological signals and respond to the change of temperature which are highly desired for multifunctional wearable electronic devices.