Stable and transient self-propagating supramolecular gelation

The ability to program sol-gel transition in time is key for living organisms to maintain their vital functions and to grow complex materials. Replicating this behavior with synthetic chemical networks is challenging, but highly rewarding for the design of intelligent biomimetic materials. Thanks to a combination of autocatalysis and supramolecular complexation, the iodate-hydroxymethanesulfinate-poly(vinyl alcohol) system features the emergence of self-propagating gelation fronts, stable or transient depending on the fine-tuning of the system.ISSN:2058-968

Supramolecular gelation controlled by an iodine clock

Programming supramolecular assembly in the time domain is a fundamental aspect of the design of biomimetic materials. We achieved the time-controlled sol–gel transition of a poly(vinyl alcohol)–iodine supramolecular complex by generating iodine in situ with a clock reaction. We demonstrate that both the gelation time and the mechanical properties of the resulting hydrogel can be tuned by properly selecting the clock parameters or through competitive iodine complexation.ISSN:1744-683XISSN:1744-684