Electrically Conductive, Tough Hydrogels with pH Sensitivity

Video demonstrates a conductive, pH sensitive hydrogel.
Electrically conductive, mechanically tough hydrogels based on a double network (DN) hydrogel were developed. The starting hydrogel was based on "polyacrylic acid" - a pH sensitive hydrogel. A conductive polymer (PEDOT) was polymerized inside this hydrogel to introduce electrical conductivity. With compressive and tensile strengths as high as 11.6 and 0.6 MPa (fully swollen in water), these fully swollen hydrogels can reach a maximum conductivity of 4.3 S/cm.