Ultra-stretchable and self-healing anti-freezing strain sensors based on hydrophobic associated polyacrylic acid hydrogels

Abstract

Water-rich conductive hydrogels with excellent stretchability are promising in strain sensors due to their potential application in flexible electronics. However, the features of being water-rich also limit their working environment. Hydrogels must be frozen at subzero temperatures and dried out under ambient conditions, leading to a loss of mechanical and electric properties. Herein, we prepare HAGx hydrogels (a polyacrylic acid (HAPAA) hydrogel in a binary water–glycerol solution, where x is the mass ratio of water to glycerol), in which the water is replaced with water–glycerol mixed solutions. The as-prepared HAGx hydrogels show great anti-freezing properties at a range of −70 to 25◦C, as well as excellent moisture stability (the weight retention rate was as high as 93% after 14 days). With the increase of glycerol, HAGx hydrogels demonstrate a superior stretchable and self-healing ability, which could even be stretched to more than 6000% without breaking, and had a 100% self-healing efficiency. The HAGx hydrogels had good self-healing ability at subzero temperatures. In addition, HAGx hydrogels also had eye-catching adhesive properties and transparency, which is helpful when used as strain sensors.