Silicon dioxide/poly(vinyl alcohol) composite hydrogels with high mechanical properties and low swellability

Abstract

Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels with tissue‐like viscoelasticity, excellent biocompatibility, and hydrophilicity have been considered as promising cartilage replacement materials. However, the low mechanical properties of pure PVA hydrogels limit their applications for bearing complicated loads. Herein, we report silicon dioxide (SiO2)/PVA composite hydrogels fabricated by fabricated cyclically freezing/thawing the aqueous mixture of PVA and methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS). MTMS hydrolyzes and forms SiO2 particles in situ to reinforce PVA hydrogel. Meanwhile, silanol group condenses with hydroxyl groups of PVA and chemically bonds with PVA. The resulting SiO2/PVA hydrogels exhibit much better mechanical properties than bare PVA hydrogel. In addition, the composite hydrogels keep very low swellable property. This prepared composite hydrogels are promising in a variety of biomedical applications such as artificial articular cartilage, drug delivery, and biosensors. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019, 136, 46895.

Tough and Low Friction Polyvinyl Alcohol Hydrogels Loaded with Anti-inflammatories for Cartilage Replacement

“…Numerous approaches have been attempted to strengthen and toughen these type of biomaterials, including the incorporation of nano/microparticles (e.g., silica, hydroxyapatite, and polydopamine) [11][12][13], chemical crosslinkers (e.g., glyoxal, glutaraldehyde, acetaldehyde, or other mono-aldehydes) [14][15][16], other polymers (e.g., poly(acrylic) acid and hyaluronic acid) [17,18], or differentiated structures (e.g., fibers, nanosheets, and meshes) [19][20][21][22]. Chemical crosslinkers are often toxic, inevitably affecting the biocompatibility [20].…”

Physicochemical modification of hydroxylated polymers to develop thermosensitive double network hydrogels

“…Unlike biological hydrogels such as the extracellular matrix (networks of protein‐polysaccharide chains) that are tough and elastic in the swollen state, 22,23 synthetic hydrogels usually have weak mechanical properties. Therefore, it restricts their potential applications where sufficient mechanical strength is required 24,25 . Several recent works have been proposed synthesizing hydrogels with improved mechanical properties; For example, nanocomposite (NC) gels, 26 double‐network (DN) gels, 27 slide‐ring hydrogels, 28 tetra‐arm poly(ethylene glycol) gels, and macromolecular microsphere composite (MMC) hydrogels were synthesized to reduce the stress concentration at the crack tip by introducing energy‐dissipating and homogeneous deformation mechanisms 29–31 .…”

“…Therefore, it restricts their potential applications where sufficient mechanical strength is required. 24,25 Several recent works have been proposed synthesizing hydrogels with improved mechanical properties; For example, nanocomposite (NC) gels, 26 doublenetwork (DN) gels, 27 slide-ring hydrogels, 28 tetra-arm poly(ethylene glycol) gels, and macromolecular microsphere composite (MMC) hydrogels were synthesized to reduce the stress concentration at the crack tip by introducing energydissipating and homogeneous deformation mechanisms. [29][30][31] Thus, hydrogels' mechanical properties can enhance and can expand the scope of their applications.…”

Enhanced mechanical properties and self‐healing behavior of PNIPAM nanocomposite hydrogel by using POSS as a physical crosslinker

“…Among them, nanocomposite hydrogels (NC gels) have been paid more intention than the others, because they may combine the advantages of both inorganic and organic materials. [33][34][35] Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) is a cubic nanohybrid molecule with an inorganic silica core and some organic R groups (i.e., alkyl, alkylene, aryl, and arylene) on the corner, one or more of which are reactive or polymerizable. 32 In these nanocomposite hydrogels, polymer chains are crosslinked onto nanoparticles chemically or physically to form a strong network, which can be considered as one kind of ways to dissipate mechanical energy under large deformation.…”

“…However, dose-, time-, and shape-dependent toxicity to live biosystems of carbon-based nanomaterials have been confirmed, which prevented their applications in biomaterials. [33][34][35] Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) is a cubic nanohybrid molecule with an inorganic silica core and some organic R groups (i.e., alkyl, alkylene, aryl, and arylene) on the corner, one or more of which are reactive or polymerizable. 36,37 The versatile substituents on the POSS corner make it more compatible with polymer matrix.…”