journal article·2026-03-11

Liquid Metal-Initiated Rapid Polymerization for High-Performance Organic-Ionogels in Wearable Sensors

Meichen Bi, Gaolei Dong, Xuan Deng, Yang Wei, Shenghong Zhong, Cong Lin, Zanyong Zhuang, Yan Yu

Publisher page

Abstract

Gel-based materials are promising candidates for flexible sensors in wearable health monitoring owing to their inherent flexibility, conductivity, and biocompatibility. However, integrating rapid fabrication, robust mechanical properties, and strong interfacial adhesion into a single gel system remains a significant challenge. Here, we report a liquid metal nanoparticle-initiated rapid polymerization strategy to fabricate organic-ionogels without external initiators or cross-linkers. The resulting gels exhibit ultrafast gelation (∼3 min), remarkable toughness (∼27 MJ m –3 ), high lap shear strength (∼2.4 MPa), and reliable strain sensing performance. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that strong intermolecular interactions, including hydrogen bonding and electrostatic forces, underpin the enhanced mechanical and adhesive properties. Furthermore, we demonstrate the practical utility of these liquid metal–organic-ionogels (LM-AHG) in a wearable health monitoring device (WHMD) integrated with machine learning algorithms. The system enables real-time, high-precision classification of joint rehabilitation stages based on strain signals, achieving 100% accuracy in stage identification. This work provides a rapid and scalable fabrication route for high-performance organic-ionogels and establishes a material-algorithm codesign paradigm for next-generation personalized rehabilitation and smart wearable electronics.
Source: openalex_inverted_index · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting Materials · Hydrogels: synthesis, properties, applications · Polymer composites and self-healing

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Key Laboratory of Advanced Materials Technologies, College of Materials Science and Engineering

Fuzhou University

Funding

National Key Research and Development Program of China · Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province

References (54)

Show source-provided references
1. 10.1038/s41581-025-00961-210.1038/s41581-025-00961-2 ↗
2. 10.1039/D4CS00220B10.1039/D4CS00220B ↗
3. 10.1016/j.nanoen.2025.11119910.1016/j.nanoen.2025.111199 ↗
4. 10.1016/j.matt.2025.10240910.1016/j.matt.2025.102409 ↗
5. 10.1007/s42114-023-00812-310.1007/s42114-023-00812-3 ↗
6. 10.1002/adma.20180233710.1002/adma.201802337 ↗
7. 10.1038/s41928-025-01386-210.1038/s41928-025-01386-2 ↗
8. 10.1002/adfm.20251224910.1002/adfm.202512249 ↗
9. 10.1126/scirobotics.adn400810.1126/scirobotics.adn4008 ↗
10. 10.1145/333216610.1145/3332166 ↗
11. 10.1016/j.nanoen.2025.11163910.1016/j.nanoen.2025.111639 ↗
12. 10.1021/acsnano.4c1763810.1021/acsnano.4c17638 ↗
13. 10.1016/j.matt.2025.10204510.1016/j.matt.2025.102045 ↗
14. 10.1038/nature2544310.1038/nature25443 ↗
15. 10.1038/s41596-023-00916-610.1038/s41596-023-00916-6 ↗
16. 10.1021/acs.chemrev.4c0051310.1021/acs.chemrev.4c00513 ↗
17. 10.1021/acsnano.1c0220910.1021/acsnano.1c02209 ↗
18. 10.1038/s41467-024-52873-710.1038/s41467-024-52873-7 ↗
19. 10.1016/j.compositesb.2021.10916410.1016/j.compositesb.2021.109164 ↗
20. 10.1002/advs.20210231410.1002/advs.202102314 ↗
21. 10.1002/adfm.20251046110.1002/adfm.202510461 ↗
22. 10.1038/s41586-025-09387-z10.1038/s41586-025-09387-z ↗
23. 10.1002/anie.20230176210.1002/anie.202301762 ↗
24. 10.1016/j.compositesb.2024.11211010.1016/j.compositesb.2024.112110 ↗
25. 10.1002/advs.20240337910.1002/advs.202403379 ↗
26. 10.1002/aenm.20220154210.1002/aenm.202201542 ↗
27. 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2017.09.00210.1016/j.bioactmat.2017.09.002 ↗
28. 10.1016/j.pmatsci.2024.10135510.1016/j.pmatsci.2024.101355 ↗
29. 10.1021/acsmacrolett.9b0078310.1021/acsmacrolett.9b00783 ↗
30. 10.1002/adfm.20251402410.1002/adfm.202514024 ↗
31. 10.1038/s41467-021-22675-210.1038/s41467-021-22675-2 ↗
32. 10.1038/s41467-017-02387-210.1038/s41467-017-02387-2 ↗
33. 10.1002/adfm.20240835110.1002/adfm.202408351 ↗
34. 10.1016/j.bios.2025.11780110.1016/j.bios.2025.117801 ↗
35. 10.1021/acsnano.3c1106310.1021/acsnano.3c11063 ↗
36. 10.1016/j.matt.2020.03.01610.1016/j.matt.2020.03.016 ↗
37. 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.12033010.1016/j.carbpol.2022.120330 ↗
38. 10.1002/anie.20231167810.1002/anie.202311678 ↗
39. 10.1038/s41467-025-63433-y10.1038/s41467-025-63433-y ↗
40. 10.1021/acscatal.4c0516910.1021/acscatal.4c05169 ↗
41. 10.1063/5.021627210.1063/5.0216272 ↗
42. 10.1002/admt.20220191910.1002/admt.202201919 ↗
43. 10.1016/j.cjsc.2025.10051810.1016/j.cjsc.2025.100518 ↗
44. 10.1016/j.cej.2023.14732110.1016/j.cej.2023.147321 ↗
45. 10.1002/adfm.20210195710.1002/adfm.202101957 ↗
46. 10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.12235710.1016/j.carbpol.2024.122357 ↗
47. 10.1016/j.actbio.2024.04.01110.1016/j.actbio.2024.04.011 ↗
48. 10.1039/D3MH00629H10.1039/D3MH00629H ↗
49. 10.1038/s41928-024-01194-010.1038/s41928-024-01194-0 ↗
50. 10.1021/acsnano.1c1109610.1021/acsnano.1c11096 ↗
51. 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.12078610.1016/j.carbpol.2023.120786 ↗
52. 10.1016/j.cej.2024.15380510.1016/j.cej.2024.153805 ↗
53. 10.1002/msc.146810.1002/msc.1468 ↗
54. 10.1007/s40820-024-01599-810.1007/s40820-024-01599-8 ↗