Authors
Pan Wu, Ruijin Tang, Shaoji Wu, Wanjiang Li, Qingyuan Jiang, Jian Xiao, Ruitian Zhu, Yurong Yan
Published in
Small methods. Pages e70876. Jul 21, 2026. Epub Jul 21, 2026.
Abstract
Hydrogel fibers (HFs) have emerged as a promising platform for wearable sensing, owing to their large length-todiameter ratio, fabric compatibility, and modular architecture. However, the high hysteresis resulting from energy dissipation during deformation remains a critical barrier to reliable sensing. Moreover, integrating low hysteresis with high strength via a simple fabrication process poses a further significant challenge. In this study, poly(acrylamide-co-itaconic acid) HFs were successfully prepared by constructing a highly entangled network locked through zirconium ion coordination. The resilience and strength of HFs were decoupled by the designed structure, thereby achieving unique mechanical properties characterized by low mechanical hysteresis (11% for 200% strain), high strength (1.1 MPa), improved toughness (2.58 MJ/m3) and moderate modulus (326 kPa). Furthermore, this coordination-locked entangled network strategy demonstrated broad applicability for selected aliphatic vinyl monomers with carboxylic acid, yielding HFs with high strength and low hysteresis. The obtained HFs-based strain sensor exhibited a stable and linear response (1%-200% strain), with a low electrical hysteresis (1.15%), a high gauge factor (1.01), a rapid response/recovery time (< 40 ms), and stretching rate adaptability. The sensor enabled real-time motion/breathing monitoring and emergency Morse code communication for speech-impaired users, demonstrating the promising application of these HFs in wearable sensing.
PMID:
42478259
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 21 Jul 2026.
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