Laponite sheets have been widely used for the preparation of tough nanocomposite hydrogels for enticing applications, however, their inferior dispersion in aqueous media resulting from the electrostatic interactions between the...
The movements of soft living tissues, such as muscle,
have sparked
a strong interest in the design of hydrogel actuators; however, so
far, typical manmade examples still lag behind their biological counterparts,
which usually function under nonequilibrium conditions through the
consumption of high-energy biomolecules and show highly autonomous
behaviors. Here, we report on self-resettable hydrogel actuators that
are powered by a chemical fuel and can spontaneously return to their
original states over time once the fuels are depleted. Self-resettable
actuation originates from a chemical fuel-mediated transient change
in the hydrophilicity of the hydrogel networks. The actuation extent
and duration can be programmed by the fuel levels, and the self-resettable
actuation process is highly recyclable through refueling. Furthermore,
various proof-of-concept autonomous soft robots are created, resembling
the movements of soft-bodied creatures in nature. This work may serve
as a starting point for the development of lifelike soft robots with
autonomous behaviors.
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