posted on 2018-09-28, 00:00authored byYunhui Shi, Yan Zhang, Limin Jia, Qian Zhang, Xinhua Xu
Next-generation
wearable electronics are expected to endure significant
deformations and mechanical damage. Therefore, self-healing stretchable
electrolytes with high ionic conductivity and robust mechanical strength,
which have high tolerance of deformations and spontaneously recover
electrochemical properties after external damage, are necessary conditions
for the realization of flexible supercapacitors. Here, a new type
of zwitterionic supramolecular hydrogel cross-linked through rationally
designed ionic associations and hydrogen bonds is reported (PAD/H2SO4). The resultant supramolecular network realizes
a high ionic conductivity of 57 mS cm–1 and unprecedented
mechanical properties such as a high toughness of 35 000 J
m–2, a notch-insensitive of up to 2200% strain,
and efficient instantaneous self-healing within 5 min. Acting as an
electrolyte, a novel flexible supercapacitor design strategy is proposed
by integrating capacitive materials directly onto the PAD/H2SO4 hydrogel to achieve exceptional electrochemical performance,
which can be repeatable for at least 50 cutting/healing cycles. The
facile and versatile strategy for the construction of the integrated
all-gel-state supercapacitors with self-healing stretchable electrolytes
will provide new directions for future long-life flexible devices.