Hierarchical hydrogen bonds directed multi-functional carbon nanotube-based supramolecular hydrogels.

Supramolecular hydrogels (SMHs) are three-dimensional networks filled with a large amount of water. The crosslinking force in the 3D network is always constructed by relatively weak and dynamic non-covalent interactions, and thus SMHs usually possess extremely high susceptibility to external environment and can show extraordinary stimuli-responsive, self-healing or other attractive properties. However, the overall crosslinking force in hydrogel networks is difficult to flexibly modulate, and this leads to limited functions of the SMHs. In this regard, hierarchical hydrogen bonds, that is, the mixture of relatively strong and relatively weak hydrogen bonds, are used herein as crosslinking force for the hydrogel preparation. The ratio of strong and weak hydrogen bonds can be finely tuned to tailor the properties of resultant gels. Thus, by delicate manipulation of the overall crosslinking force in the system, a hydrogel with multiple (thermal, pH and NIR light) responsiveness, autonomous self-healing property and interesting temperature dependent, reversible adhesion behavior is obtained. This kind of hierarchical hydrogen bond manipulation is proved to be a general method for multiple-functionality hydrogel preparation, and the resultant material shows potential for a range of applications.

[1]  Gautam R Desiraju,et al.  Hydrogen bridges in crystal engineering: interactions without borders. , 2002, Accounts of chemical research.

[2]  Alan H. Windle,et al.  Nematic Liquid Crystallinity of Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes , 2003, Science.

[3]  J. Aubert.  Note: Thermally removable epoxy adhesives incorporating thermally reversible diels-alder adducts , 2003 .

[4]  T. Mallouk,et al.  Individual single-walled nanotubes and hydrogels made by oxidative exfoliation of carbon nanotube ropes. , 2003, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[5]  I. Hamachi,et al.  Semi-wet peptide/protein array using supramolecular hydrogel , 2004, Nature materials.

[6]  Neralagatta M Sangeetha,et al.  Supramolecular gels: functions and uses. , 2005, Chemical Society reviews.

[7]  A. Yodh,et al.  Structure of semidilute single-wall carbon nanotube suspensions and gels. , 2006, Nano letters.

[8]  Y. Takashima,et al.  Chemically-responsive sol-gel transition of supramolecular single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) hydrogel made by hybrids of SWNTs and cyclodextrins. , 2007, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[9]  J. Lewis,et al.  Self-healing materials with microvascular networks. , 2007, Nature materials.

[10]  C. Rao,et al.  Synthesis and properties of novel nanocomposites made of single-walled carbon nanotubes and low molecular mass organogels and their thermo-responsive behavior triggered by near IR radiation , 2008 .

[11]  Liangti Qu,et al.  Carbon Nanotube Arrays with Strong Shear Binding-On and Easy Normal Lifting-Off , 2008, Science.

[12]  T. Fujigaya,et al.  NIR Laser‐Driven Reversible Volume Phase Transition of Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotube/Poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) Composite Gels , 2008 .

[13]  Hua Bai,et al.  Drying enhanced adhesion of polythiophene nanotubule arrays on smooth surfaces. , 2008, ACS nano.

[14]  Akira Harada,et al.  Cyclodextrin-based supramolecular polymers. , 2009, Chemical Society reviews.

[15]  Xiaoxing Wang,et al.  Infrared Study of CO2 Sorption over ?Molecular Basket? Sorbent Consisting of Polyethylenimine-Modified Mesoporous Molecular Sieve , 2009 .

[16]  Zhi-Qiang Yu,et al.  Multi-responsive carbon nanotube gel prepared via ultrasound-induced assembly , 2009 .

[17]  Jonathan W Steed,et al.  Anion-tuning of supramolecular gel properties , 2009, Nature Chemistry.

[18]  Feihe Huang,et al.  Responsive supramolecular gels constructed by crown ether based molecular recognition. , 2009, Angewandte Chemie.

[19]  A. Charette,et al.  TfNH2 as achiral hydrogen-bond donor additive to enhance the selectivity of a transition metal catalyzed reaction. Highly enantio- and diastereoselective rhodium-catalyzed cyclopropanation of alkenes using alpha-cyano diazoacetamide. , 2009, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[20]  M. W. Lee,et al.  Enhanced mechanical strength of chitosan hydrogel beads by impregnation with carbon nanotubes , 2009 .

[21]  Li-Juan Xing,et al.  Hydrogen-bonding interaction in a complex of amino acid with urea studied by DFT calculations , 2009 .

[22]  Bing Xu,et al.  Aromatic-aromatic interactions induce the self-assembly of pentapeptidic derivatives in water to form nanofibers and supramolecular hydrogels. , 2010, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[23]  Masaru Yoshida,et al.  High-water-content mouldable hydrogels by mixing clay and a dendritic molecular binder , 2010, Nature.

[24]  H. Sheardown,et al.  Reinforcement of collagen with covalently-functionalized single-walled carbon nanotube crosslinkers , 2010 .

[25]  I. Hamachi,et al.  Rational Molecular Design of Stimulus‐Responsive Supramolecular Hydrogels Based on Dipeptides , 2011, Advanced materials.

[26]  Xuetong Zhang,et al.  Synthesis of conducting polymer hydrogels with 2D building blocks and their potential-dependent gel-sol transitions. , 2011, Chemical communications.

[27]  Akira Harada,et al.  Redox-responsive self-healing materials formed from host–guest polymers , 2011, Nature communications.

[28]  W. Ma,et al.  Macroscopic carbon nanotube assemblies: preparation, properties, and potential applications. , 2011, Small.

[29]  David J. Nesbitt,et al.  Definition of the hydrogen bond (IUPAC Recommendations 2011) , 2011 .

[30]  H. Abe,et al.  Supramolecular Hydrogel of Bile Salts Triggered by Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes , 2011, Advanced materials.

[31]  Justin R. Kumpfer,et al.  Optically healable supramolecular polymers , 2011, Nature.

[32]  Jiaxing Huang,et al.  Sticky interconnect for solution-processed tandem solar cells. , 2011, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[33]  J. Fallas,et al.  Multi-hierarchical self-assembly of a collagen mimetic peptide from triple helix to nanofibre and hydrogel. , 2011, Nature chemistry.

[34]  Yaling Zhang,et al.  Synthesis of multiresponsive and dynamic chitosan-based hydrogels for controlled release of bioactive molecules. , 2011, Biomacromolecules.

[35]  P. Bag,et al.  Co-Crystals of Sulfamethazine with Some Carboxylic Acids and Amides: Co-Former Assisted Tautomerism in an Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient and Hydrogen Bond Competition Study , 2011 .

[36]  Ling Lin,et al.  A strong bio-inspired layered PNIPAM-clay nanocomposite hydrogel. , 2012, Angewandte Chemie.

[37]  Ziqiang Shao,et al.  Glucono-δ-lactone controlled assembly of graphene oxide hydrogels with selectively reversible gel–sol transition , 2012 .

[38]  Duncan J. Irschick,et al.  Looking Beyond Fibrillar Features to Scale Gecko‐Like Adhesion , 2012, Advanced materials.

[39]  Oren A Scherman,et al.  Ultrahigh-water-content supramolecular hydrogels exhibiting multistimuli responsiveness. , 2012, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[40]  Oren A Scherman,et al.  Sustained release of proteins from high water content supramolecular polymer hydrogels. , 2012, Biomaterials.

[41]  Feihe Huang,et al.  Self-healing supramolecular gels formed by crown ether based host-guest interactions. , 2012, Angewandte Chemie.

[42]  Cheng-Chih Hsu,et al.  Rapid self-healing hydrogels , 2012, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[43]  Zhuang Liu,et al.  Noble metal coated single-walled carbon nanotubes for applications in surface enhanced Raman scattering imaging and photothermal therapy. , 2012, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[44]  Aaron M Kushner,et al.  Multiphase design of autonomic self-healing thermoplastic elastomers. , 2012, Nature chemistry.

[45]  Stuart J Rowan,et al.  High-strength, healable, supramolecular polymer nanocomposites. , 2012, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[46]  Benjamin C. K. Tee,et al.  An electrically and mechanically self-healing composite with pressure- and flexion-sensitive properties for electronic skin applications. , 2012, Nature nanotechnology.

[47]  M. Prato,et al.  Melting of hydrogen bonds in uracil derivatives probed by infrared spectroscopy and ab initio molecular dynamics. , 2012, The journal of physical chemistry. B.

[48]  Yanmei He,et al.  Multistimuli Responsive Dendritic Organogels Based on Azobenzene-Containing Poly(aryl ether) Dendron , 2012 .

[49]  A. Khademhosseini,et al.  Carbon nanotube reinforced hybrid microgels as scaffold materials for cell encapsulation. , 2012, ACS nano.

[50]  E. W. Meijer,et al.  Hierarchical Formation of Supramolecular Transient Networks in Water: A Modular Injectable Delivery System , 2012, Advanced materials.

[51]  E. Kumacheva,et al.  Multiple shape transformations of composite hydrogel sheets. , 2013, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[52]  J. Steed,et al.  Halogen-bonding-triggered supramolecular gel formation. , 2013, Nature chemistry.

[53]  R. Baughman,et al.  Carbon Nanotubes: Present and Future Commercial Applications , 2013, Science.

[54]  Akira Harada,et al.  Preorganized Hydrogel: Self‐Healing Properties of Supramolecular Hydrogels Formed by Polymerization of Host–Guest‐Monomers that Contain Cyclodextrins and Hydrophobic Guest Groups , 2013, Advanced materials.

[55]  Kimoon Kim,et al.  Supramolecular velcro for reversible underwater adhesion. , 2013, Angewandte Chemie.