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Lignin in situ self-assembly facilitates biomimetic multiphase structure for fabricating ultra-strong and tough ionic conductors for wearable pressure and strain sensors

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Abstract

With the rapid development of wearable devices, the fabrication of strong and tough ionic conductors for multifunctional wearable sensors has become crucial. However, developing ionic conductors with high mechanical strength and elasticity, excellent toughness, satisfactory conductivity, and self-healing is extremely difficult owing to their inherent structural design contradictions. Herein, we propose a lignin mediated biomimetic multiphase structure integrated with a multiple noncovalent interaction strategy to simultaneously increase the strength and toughness of ionic conductors without compromising their conductivity and self-healing ability. The in situ self-assembly of modified lignin to generate nanosphere structures as dynamic chemical crosslinkers realized the construction of a soft–hard multiphase. Furthermore, the charged lignosulfonate positively promoted the conductivity of ionic conductors, eliminating the traditionally observed negative effect of high crosslinking density on the conductivity. This, combined with multiple noncovalent interactions in the soft and hard phases, synergistically contributed to the impressive properties. The synthesized ionic conductors exhibited impressive mechanical properties corresponding to a maximum tensile strength of 7.14 MPa and maximum toughness of 23.3 MJ/m3, excellent elasticity, high conductivity, and good solvent resistance. More importantly, the conductors maintained the self-healing ability despite the excellent mechanical properties. The high-performance strain and pressure sensors manufactured from these materials demonstrated satisfactory sensitivity (S = 0.358–0.653), relatively fast response (386 ms), and long-term reliability (1300 cycles). This work overcomes the challenge of integrating several important but contradictory properties of ionic conductors and paves the way for the fabrication of sustainable and multifunctional wearable sensors suitable for harsh environments.

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Summary Ultra-strong, stretchable lignin-based ionic conductors with multiscale biomimetic design for sustainable and multifunctional wearable pressure and strain sensors.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of the Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions of China (grant no. 21KJB220012), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 32201498 and 32271809), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 31890774), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 31971600), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 32001283).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China

    Xinyu Wang, Yi Shen, Shijian Xu, Caoxing Huang, Chenhuan Lai, Qiang Yong, Fuxiang Chu, Daihui Zhang, Chuanwei Lu & Jifu Wang

  2. Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry (CAF), Jiangsu Province, No 16, Suojin Wucun, Nanjing, 210042, China

    Fuxiang Chu, Daihui Zhang & Jifu Wang

  3. Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Najran University, Najran, 11001, Saudi Arabia

    Xinyu Wang & Hassan Algadi

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  1. Xinyu Wang
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  2. Yi Shen
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  3. Shijian Xu
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  4. Caoxing Huang
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  5. Chenhuan Lai
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  6. Qiang Yong
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  7. Fuxiang Chu
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  8. Hassan Algadi
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  9. Daihui Zhang
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  10. Chuanwei Lu
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  11. Jifu Wang
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Contributions

Chuanwei Lu and Daihui Zhang supervised the project; Xinyu Wang and Chuanwei Lu proposed the concept; Xinyu Wang, Yi Shen, and Shijian Xu performed the experiments; Xinyu Wang, Yi Shen, Shijian Xu, Caoxing Huang, Chenhuan Lai, Daihui Zhang, Chuanwei Lu, Jifu Wang, Hassan Algadi, Qiang Yong, and Fuxiang Chu performed the data analysis. Daihui Zhang, Chuanwei Lu, and Xinyu Wang wrote and revised the paper.

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Correspondence to Daihui Zhang, Chuanwei Lu or Jifu Wang.

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Wang, X., Shen, Y., Xu, S. et al. Lignin in situ self-assembly facilitates biomimetic multiphase structure for fabricating ultra-strong and tough ionic conductors for wearable pressure and strain sensors. Adv Compos Hybrid Mater 6, 84 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42114-023-00658-9

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