Cucurbit[n]uril Supramolecular Hydrogel Networks as Tough and Healable Adhesives

Supramolecular noncovalent interactions are widely found in natural adhesion phenomena to control macroscopic adhesion and accomplish a variety of complex functions. Such supramolecular adhesives could impart the interfaces with intriguing properties, e.g., energy dissipation and self-healing, on account of their dynamic nature. Here, we demonstrate that cucurbit[8]uril (CB[8])-based supramolecular hydrogel networks can function as dynamic adhesives for diverse nonporous (e.g., glass, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, and titanium) and porous substrates (wood and bone). Without any surface prefunctionalization or introduction of curing agents, these CB[8] hydrogel networks can be readily applied by curing around the softening temperature, forming a tough and healable adhesive interlayer. The ability to fabricate a robust sandwich model consisting of substrate-CB[8] hydrogel network-substrate enables a number of applications including stretchable and wearable electronics, hybrid systems for biomedical devices or tissue/bone regeneration.