While hydrogel mechanical properties have been highly studied in recent years, the presence of a simultaneously fatigue-resistant and fracture-resistant hydrogel network is elusive. Our group has developed a fatigue-resistant hydrogel using a blend of sphere-forming AB diblock and ABA triblock copolymers which microphase separates to form a homogeneous network of tethered spheres. This blend of block copolymers exhibits excellent elasticity and fatigue-resistant properties but is still prone to brittle fracture. Therefore, our group has been studying how the addition of a rubbery, hydrophobic block between the hydrophobic, glassy A block and hydrophilic B block provides a mechanism for energy dissipation built directly into the fatigue-resistant network. This presentation reports how the presence of this new C block in ACB/ACBCA block copolymer blends affects the mechanical properties of the hydrogel when compared to the original AB/ABA hydrogel.

Impact of the presence of a rubbery middle block on the formation of a fatigue-resistant and fracture-resistant ABC block terpolymer hydrogel

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.