PVA_H2SO4 Hydrogel for wearable devices

In recent years, wearable electronic sensing devices have attracted much attention because they can easily monitor human motion and physiological signals. The design of traditional wearable electronic devices mostly combines conductive materials with flexible substrates and provides for their placement on the body using an external aid like plasters and bands. The emergence and development of wearable devices have provided new directions for many fields, especially artificial intelligence systems and wearable healthcare devices. Currently, skin-attached wearable devices are widely expected because they adhere well to the skin and accurately enable health monitoring. However, wearable equipment, such as glasses or metal, is still limited to the conventional form. The key reason is that the critical devices cannot be flexible and stretchable so the device cannot be deformed and adhered well to the skin. Therefore, flexible, stretchable, and conductive materials are highly expected in wide applications. Gel-based materials exhibited excellent elongation, self-healing, and self-adhesive performance for various applications. As a result, the sample could be used for motion detection and signal transmission. Our research efforts are focused on the development of an alternative to traditional electronics that should be low-cost, bio-degradable, and made of environmentally nontoxic substances such as hydrogels. Hydrogels exhibit excellent flexibility and stretchability as promising candidates for preparing wearable devices, especially conductive hydrogels. We have investigated PVA_H2SO4 hydrogels and PVA_H2SO4/PANI-PAMPSA- PVA_H2SO4 double-layered hydrogels with different molecular weight as well as different amounts of PVA polymer as potential materials for energetic or sensors applications. Reference: Giovagnoli, A.; D’Altri, G.; Yeasmin, L.; Di Matteo, V.; Scurti, S.; Di Filippo, M.F.; Gualandi, I.; Cassani, M.C.; Caretti, D.; Panzavolta, S.; et al. Multi-Layer PVA-PANI Conductive Hydrogel for Symmetrical Supercapacitors: Preparation and Characterization. Gels 2024, 10, 458. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070458 Giada D’Altri, Lamyea Yeasmin, Valentina Di Matteo, Stefano Scurti, Angelica Giovagnoli, Maria Francesca Di Filippo, Isacco Gualandi, Maria Cristina Cassani, Daniele Caretti, Silvia Panzavolta, Erika Scavetta, Mariangela Rea, and Barbara Ballarin,ACS Omega 2024 9 (6), 6391-6402. DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c05392