Toughening Hydrogels by Immersing with Oppositely Charged Polymers

A very simple yet novel strategy to significantly enhance the mechanical properties of hydrogels is reported. Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) hydrogels with aligned macroporous channels are immersed in the aqueous solutions of poly(dimethyl diallyl ammonium chloride) (PDMDAAC). Strong electrostatic interactions are formed between the anionic PAA and cationic PDMDAAC chains. In the resultant PAA/PDMDAAC hybrid hydrogels, the mass ratio of PDMDAAC to PAA is about 0.2 and PDMDAAC is uniformly distributed throughout the gels. The mechanical properties of the formed hybrid hydrogels are largely enhanced in comparison with the original PAA hydrogels. The hybrid hydrogels exhibit high tensile strengths (0.38-1.73 MPa), elastic moduli (0.21-1.59 MPa) and toughness (up to 3.0 MJ/m(3)), about several to more than 10 times those of the corresponding PAA hydrogels. In addition, the PAA/PDMDAAC hydrogels also show excellent and very rapid shape recovery ability in both air and deionized water. (C) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.