Design and evaluation of a self-healing, highly stretchable double-network gel polymer electrolyte for potential use in wearable supercapacitors
This work reports the design and synthesis of a novel self-healing and stretchable gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) based on a double-network (DN) architecture combining polyacrylamide (PAM) and gellan gum (GG). The GPE was fabricated via a UV-initiated one-pot photopolymerization process in the presen...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Chemical Society
2025
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| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/120470/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/120470/1/120470.pdf |
| Summary: | This work reports the design and synthesis of a novel self-healing and stretchable gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) based on a double-network (DN) architecture combining polyacrylamide (PAM) and gellan gum (GG). The GPE was fabricated via a UV-initiated one-pot photopolymerization process in the presence of Na+ ions, which act both as ionic charge carriers and physical cross-linkers through electrostatic interactions. The optimized PG-3 DN GPE exhibited remarkable mechanical performance, achieving a tensile strength of 2.0 MPa and an elongation at break of 400%. Furthermore, the GPE demonstrated high ionic conductivity (0.29 S/cm) and excellent self-healing efficiency (>90%) at 60 °C under ambient pressure, without the need for additional healing agents. Spectroscopic and morphological characterizations (FTIR, XPS,13C NMR, SEM) confirmed the formation of a homogeneous and interconnected porous network that supports efficient ion mobility and structural integrity. The observed improvements in mechanical and electrochemical behavior were attributed to synergistic hydrogen bonding, Na+-mediated ionic bridging, and optimized water retention. Compared to conventional GPEs, this PAM/GG-based DN system provides an environmentally friendly, biopolymer-integrated, and scalable platform suitable for next-generation flexible and wearable energy storage applications, particularly in supercapacitors. |
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