Polyoxometalate-doped Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium/Polyacrylamide Interpenetrating Hydrogels with Enhanced Mechanical and Tribological Properties

Fang Xu; Xin-Bao Han; Hao-Hao Ren; Wei-Tao Gong; Rong-Sheng Cai; Yu Li; Ming Zhang; Wen-Bo Sheng

doi:10.1007/s10118-026-3611-z

Your Location：

Home >

Browse articles >

Polyoxometalate-doped Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium/Polyacrylamide Interpenetrating Hydrogels with Enhanced Mechanical and Tribological Properties

RESEARCH ARTICLE | Updated：2026-07-01

- Polyoxometalate-doped Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium/Polyacrylamide Interpenetrating Hydrogels with Enhanced Mechanical and Tribological Properties
- Chinese Journal of Polymer Science Vol. 44, Issue 7, Pages: 2188-2198(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  a.State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
  b.College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
  c.School of Stomatology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
  d.Shandong Laboratory of Advanced Materials and Green Manufacturing at Yantai, Yantai 264000, China
- Author bio：
  
  zhm@licp.cas.cn (M.Z.)
  shengwb@licp.cas.cn (W.B.S.)
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s10118-026-3611-z
  CLC：
- Received：03 January 2026，
  
  Revised：2026-01-30，
  
  Accepted：04 February 2026，
  
  Online First：16 April 2026，
  
  Published：05 July 2026
- Accepted：
Scan QR Code
Xu, F.; Han, X. B.; Ren, H. H.; Gong, W. T.; Cai, R. S.; Li, Y.; Zhang, M.; Sheng, W. B. Polyoxometalate-doped chitosan quaternary ammonium/polyacrylamide interpenetrating hydrogels with enhanced mechanical and tribological properties. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2026, 44, 2188–2198

Fang Xu, Xin-Bao Han, Hao-Hao Ren, et al. Polyoxometalate-doped Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium/Polyacrylamide Interpenetrating Hydrogels with Enhanced Mechanical and Tribological Properties[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2026, 44(7): 2188-2198.
Xu, F.; Han, X. B.; Ren, H. H.; Gong, W. T.; Cai, R. S.; Li, Y.; Zhang, M.; Sheng, W. B. Polyoxometalate-doped chitosan quaternary ammonium/polyacrylamide interpenetrating hydrogels with enhanced mechanical and tribological properties. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2026, 44, 2188–2198 DOI： 10.1007/s10118-026-3611-z.

Fang Xu, Xin-Bao Han, Hao-Hao Ren, et al. Polyoxometalate-doped Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium/Polyacrylamide Interpenetrating Hydrogels with Enhanced Mechanical and Tribological Properties[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2026, 44(7): 2188-2198. DOI： 10.1007/s10118-026-3611-z.

摘要

Polyoxometalate (POM) doped chitosan quaternary ammonium/polyacrylamide hydrogel with chain entanglement has enhanced mechanical properties (low hysteresis and excellent resilience)

improved lubrication performance

and multiple responsiveness to pH and salt ions.

Abstract

Combining nanomaterials with the three-dimensional hydrophilic network of hydrogels is an effective strategy for creating smart materials with enhanced mechanical properties and advanced functionalities. Herein

chitosan quaternary ammonium/polyacrylamide (QP) hydrogels with interpenetrating networks were prepared

via

in situ

method based on chain entanglement

in which polyoxometalate (POM) nanoparticles were introduced as physical crosslinking agents. This incorporation of POMs significantly improved the overall mechanical properties of the hydrogels

endowing them with high fracture energy

low hysteresis

and outstanding resilience under high water content (

90%). Owing to the strong water molecule adsorption capacity of POMs and their homogeneous and dense distribution as physical crosslinking points in the hydrogel structure

the friction coefficient was significantly reduced. Furthermore

the hydrogels exhibited good biocompatibility as well as pH- and ion-responsive behavior

while maintaining structural stability under varying external stimuli. Notably

the swelling ratio increased in high-concentration salt solutions

making them promising for applications in controlled drug release

intelligent monitoring

and especially in seawater desa

lination treatment.

关键词

Keywords

references

Wichterle, O.; Lím, D. Hydrophilic gels for biological use. Nature 1960 , 185 , 117−118..

Zhao, X., Chen, X.; Yuk, H.; Lin, S.; Liu, X.; Parada, G. Soft materials by design: Unconventional polymer networks give extreme properties. Chem. Rev. 2021 , 121 , 4309−4372..

Chen, W.; Ming, Y.; Wang, M.; Huang, M.; Liu, H.; Huang, Y.; Huang, Z.; Qing, L.; Wang, Q.; Jia, B. Nanocomposite hydrogels in regenerative medicine: applications and challenges. Macromol. Rapid Commun. 2023 , 44 , 2300128..

Wang, Q.; Kang, M.; Wang, D.; Tang, B. Z. Synergizing AIE luminogens and hydrogel matrices: advancing precision medicine through smart material design. Coord. Chem. Rev. 2026 , 548 , 217227..

Imani, K. B. C.; Dodda, J. M.; Yoon, J.; Torres, F. G.; Imran, A. B.; Deen, G. R.; Al-Ansari, R. Seamless integration of conducting hydrogels in daily life: from preparation to wearable application. Adv. Sci. 2024 , 11 , 2306784..

Yang, S.; Yang, Y.; Xia, X.; Zou, B.; Wang, B.; Zhang, Y. Biomimetic stimulus responsiveness: from materials design to device integration. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2024 , 34 , 2400500..

Verma, A.; Lal, B.; Ravi, K.; Suman; Ramya, M.; Singh, S.; Jasrotia, R. Clean water future: the role of chitosan hydrogel nanocomposites in wastewater management. Int. J. Biol. Macromol. 2025 , 330 , 148213..

Zhang, Z.; Fu, H.; Li, Z.; Huang, J.; Xu, Z.; Lai, Y.; Qian, X.; Zhang, S. Hydrogel materials for sustainable water resources harvesting & treatment: synthesis, mechanism and applications. Chem. Eng. J. 2022 , 439 , 135756..

Zou, L.; Li, Y.; Feng, S.; Wang, Z.; Xiao, H.; Chen, S.; Wang, Y.; He, L.; Mao, X. Innovations and applications of composite hydrogels: from polymer-based systems to metal-ion-doped and functional nanomaterial-enhanced architectures. Small 2025 , 21 , 2503147..

[Zuo, F.; Hu, J.; Zhang, S. X.; Guo, J. X.; Li, R. G .; Xin, Y. M.; Li, C. J.; Yan, J. Q. Facile preparation of super-strong and tough poly(vinyl alcohol)/carbon nanotube hydrogel enabled by triple crosslinking networks. Chinese J. Polym. Sci . 2025 , DOI: 10.1007/s10118-025-3438-z..

Wei, K.; Yu, X.; Zhang, X.; Cao, J.; Bai, L.; Wang, W.; Chen, H.; Yang, L. Self-healing, tough hydrogels with long-lasting moisture and extreme temperature tolerance and application for flexible sensors. Chem. Eng. Sci. 2026 , 319 , 122312..

Wang, Y.; Li, Y.; Zhang, Y.; You, L.; Song, Y.; Li, T.; Fang, Z.; Gui, A.; Li, Y.; Liao, L.; Yang, R. Graphene-doped hydrogels with enhanced conductivity and stretchability for all-weather wearable devices. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2025 , 35 , 2425014..

Tang, Y.; Wu, B.; Li, J.; Lu, C.; Wu, J.; Xiong, R. Biomimetic structural hydrogels reinforced by gradient twisted plywood architectures. Adv. Mater. 2024 , 37 , 2411372..

Zeng, X.; Teng, L.; Wang, X.; Lu, T.; Leng, W.; Wu, X.; Li, D.; Zhong, Y.; Sun, X.; Zhu, S.; Dong, Y.; Tan, P.; Zeng, Z.; Hu, Z.; Li, Z.; Zheng, Q. Efficient multi-physical crosslinked nanocomposite hydrogel for a conformal strain and self-powered tactile sensor. Nano Energy 2025 , 135 , 110669..

Guo, J.; Zhang, T.; Hao, X.; Liu, S.; Zou, Y.; Li, J.; Wu, W.; Chen, L.; Liu, X. Aramid nanofiber/MXene-reinforced polyelectrolyte hydrogels for absorption-dominated electromagnetic interference shielding and wearable sensing. Nano-Micro Lett. 2025 , 17 , 271..

Pardo, A.; Gómez-Florit, M.; Barbosa, S.; Taboada, P.; Domingues, R. M. A.; Gomes, M. E. Magnetic nanocomposite hydrogels for tissue engineering: design concepts and remote actuation strategies to control cell fate. ACS Nano 2021 , 15 , 175−209..

Wang, M.; Ouyang, R.; Jiang, Y.; Liu, Z.; Zhou, X.; Shi, Y.; He, C.; Zhu, L.; Yue, B. Conductive hydrogels with photothermal effects: material design, mechanisms, and multifunctional applications. Sci. China Chem. 2025 , 68 , 4693−4711..

Fang, Y.; Xing, C.; Liu, J.; Zhang, Y.; Li, M.; Han, Q. Supermolecular film crosslinked by polyoxometalate and chitosan with superior antimicrobial effect. Int. J. Biol. Macromol. 2020 , 154 , 732−738..

Ma, M.; Li, C.; Fan, W.; Su, Y.; Guo, D.; Li, M.; Zhou, Y. Construc ting high-efficiency polyoxometalate-based antibacterial hydrogels for wearable sensors. Langmuir 2025 , 41 , 26261−26275..

Yang, D.; Wang, M.; Sun, L.; Ma, P. A tetrameric double peroxyl bonds-bridged Zr-substituted phosphotungstate with good catalytic oxidation activity for sulfides. Mol. Catal. 2025 , 572 , 114786..

Mu, C.; Fang, J.; Nie, J.; Fu, L.; Li, W. Embedding hydrogel electrodes into hydrogel electrolyte: an 3D protecting strategy for stretchable high-performance supercapacitor. Chem. Eng. J. 2024 , 484 , 149505..

Geng, J.; Lu, Y.; Yang, J.; Xue, S.; Meng, Y.; Liu, S. A polyoxometalate-based multifunctional hydrogel for integrated electrochromic and sensing devices. Chem. Eng. J. 2025 , 511 , 161798..

Guedes, G.; Wang, S.; Fontana, F.; Figueiredo, P.; Lindén, J.; Correia, A.; Pinto, R. J. B.; Hietala, S.; Sousa, F. L.; Santos, H. A. Dual-crosslinked dynamic hydrogel incorporating {Mo 154 } with pH and NIR responsiveness for chemo-photothermal therapy. Adv. Mater. 2021 , 33 , 2007761..

Dutta, S.; Misra, A.; Bose, S. Polyoxometalate nanocluster-infused triple IPN hydrogels for excellent microplastic removal from contaminated water: detection, photodegradation, and upcycling. Nanoscale 2024 , 16 , 5188−5205..

Zhao, B.; Ren, Y.; Zhang, K.; Dong, Y.; Wang, K.; Zhang, N.; Li, J.; Yuan, M.; Wang, J.; Tu, Q. Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose reinforced bilayer hydrogel dressings containing L-arginine-modified polyoxometalate nanoclusters to promote healing of chronic diabetic wounds. Carbohyd. Polym. 2024 , 342 , 122396..

Liu, C.; Lv, M.; Xu, Q.; Xie, J.; You, Y.; Guo, K.; Jiang, G.; Hou, L.; Yang, H.; Yong, Y. Chronological adaptive polyoxometalate-based hydrogel for diabetic chronic wounds through synchronous bacterial ferroptosis death and immunomodulation. Nano Today 2024 , 58 , 102415..

Huang, H.; Su, Y.; Wang, C.; Lei, B.; Song, X.; Wang, W.; Wu, P.; Liu, X.; Dong, X.; Zhong, L. Injectable tissue-adhesive hydrogel for photothermal/chemodynamic synergistic antibacterial and wound healing promotion. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2023 , 15 , 2714−2724..

[Xu, F.; Han, X.; Xu, R.; Ren, H.; Ma, S.; Li, B.; W u, Y.; Zhou, F.; Sheng, W. Hydrogels with negligible hysteresis, enhanced conductivity, and good absorbability enabled by synergistic chain entanglement and polyoxometalates. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2025 , DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5c18803..

Müller, A.; Todea, A. M.; van Slageren, J.; Dressel, M.; Bögge, H.; Schmidtmann, M.; Luban, M.; Engelhardt, L.; Rusu, M. Triangular geometrical and magnetic motifs uniquely linked on a spherical capsule surface. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2005 , 44 , 3857−3861..

Botar, B.; Kögerler, P.; Hill, C. L. [{(Mo)Mo 5 O 21 (H 2 O) 3 (SO 4 )} 12 (VO) 30 (H 2 O) 20 ] 36− : a molecular quantum spin icosidodecahedron. Chem. Commun . 2005 , 25 , 3138−3140..

Kim, J.; Zhang, G.; Shi, M.; Suo, Z. Fracture, fatigue, and friction of polymers in which entanglements greatly outnumber cross-links. Science 2021 , 374 , 212−216..

Zhao, J.; Chen, R.; Cheng, D.; Yang, X.; Zhang, H.; Zheng, J.; Hu, R. Extremely ultrahigh stretchable starch-based hydrogels with continuous hydrogen bonding. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2025 , 35 , 2415530..

Wang, H.; Fang, L.; Yang, Y.; Zhang, L.; Wang, Y. H 5 PMo 10 V 2 O 40 immobilized on functionalized chloromethylated polystyrene by electrostatic interactions: a highly efficient and recyclable heterogeneous catalyst for hydroxylation of benzene. Catal. Sci. Technol. 2016 , 6 , 8005−8015..

Xiao, W.; Zhao, P.; Deng, S.; Zhang, N. Anchoring H 3 PW 12 O 40 on 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane modified graphene oxide: enhanced adsorption capacity and photocatalytic activity toward methyl orange. New J. Chem. 2015 , 39 , 3719−3727..

Petchsangsai, M.; Sajomsang, W.; Gonil, P.; Nuchuchua, O.; Sutapun, B.; Puttipipatkhachorn, S.; Ruktanonchai, U. R. A water-soluble methylated N -(4- N,N -dimethylaminocinnamyl) chitosan chloride as novel mucoadhesive polymeric nanocomplex platform for sustained-release drug delivery. Carbohyd. Polym. 2011 , 83 , 1263−1273..

Meng, X.; Qiao, Y.; Do, C.; Bras, W.; He, C.; Ke, Y.; Russell, T. P.; Qiu, D. Hysteresis-free nanoparticle-reinforced hydrogels. Adv. Mater. 2022 , 34 , 2108243..

Lan, G.; Zhu, S.; Chen, D.; Zhang, H.; Zou, L.; Zeng, Y. Highly adhesive antibacterial bioactive composite hydrogels with controllable flexibility and swelling as wound dressing for full-thickness skin healing. Front. Bioeng. Biotech. 2021 , 9 , 785302..

Xia, S.; Fu, W.; Liu, J.; Gao, G. Recyclable hydrogel for human-machine interface of multi-mode human vital signal acquisition. Sci. China Mater. 2023 , 66 , 2843−2851..

Huang, S. C.; Xia, X. X.; Fan, R. X.; Qian, Z. G. Programmable electrostatic interactions expand the landscape of dynamic functional hydrogels. Chem. Mater. 2020 , 32 , 1937−1945..

Viboonratanasri, D.; King, D. R.; Okumura, T.; Terkawi, M. A.; Katsuyama, Y.; Lama, M.; Yasui, T.; Kurokawa, T. Porous and tough polyacrylamide/carboxymethyl cellulose gels chemically crosslinked via Cryo-UV polymerization for sustained drug release. Gels 2025 , 11 , 453..

Wang, F.; Song, X.; Chen, J.; Chu, J.; Wang, Y.; Chen, Y. Mechanically robust, high water-content hydrogels with microphase separated membrane for wastewater regeneration. Colloids Surf. A: Physicochem. Eng. Asp. 2026 , 730 , 138953..

Feng, Y.; Wang, S.; Li, Y.; Ma, W.; Zhang, G.; Yang, M.; Li, H.; Yang, Y.; Long, Y. Entanglement in smart hydrogels: fast response time, anti-freezing and anti-drying. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2023 , 33 , 2211027..

Zhang, M.; Yang, Y.; Li, M.; Shang, Q.; Xie, R.; Yu, J.; Shen, K.; Zhang, Y.; Cheng, Y. Toughening double-network hydrogels by polyelectrolytes. Adv. Mater. 2023 , 35 , 2301551..

Park, J.; Kim, J. Y.; Heo, J. H.; Kim, Y.; Kim, S. A.; Park, K.; Lee, Y.; Jin, Y.; Shin, S. R.; Kim, D. W.; Seo, J. Intrinsically nonswellable multifunctional hydrogel with dynamic nanoconfinement networks for robust tissue-adaptable bioelectronics. Adv. Sci. 2023 , 10 , 2207237..

Lin, X.; Zhang, L.; Duan, B. Polyphenol-mediated chitin self-assembly for constructing a fully naturally resourced hydrogel with high strength and toughness. Mater. Horiz. 2021 , 8 , 2503−2512..

Zhang, Y.; Wei, H.; Hua, B.; Hu, C.; Zhang, W. Preparation and application of the thermo-/pH-/ion-sensitive semi-IPN hydrogel based on chitosan. Int. J. Biol. Macromol. 2024 , 258 , 128968..

Qiu, W.; Chen, G.; Zhu, H.; Zhang, Q.; Zhu, S. Enhanced stretchability and robustness towards flexible ionotronics via double-network structure and ion-dipole interactions. Chem. Eng. J. 2022 , 434 , 134752..

Huang, X. Y.; Zhu, H. Q.; Li, L. F.; Lv, T. C.; Li, H. Y.; Gu, J. J.; Wang, W.; Xue, B.; Lei, H.; Cao, Y. Tough, transparent, self-healing ionogel with exceptional moisture and impact resistance. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2025 , 43 , 1483−1495..

Yao, P.; Bao, Q.; Yao, Y.; Xiao, M.; Xu, Z.; Yang, J.; Liu, W. Environmentally stable, robust, adhesive, and conductive supramolecular deep eutectic gels as ultrasensitive flexible temperature sensor. Adv. Mater. 2023 , 35 , 2300114..

Zheng, S. Y.; Zhou, J.; Si, M.; Wang, S.; Zhu, F.; Lin, J.; Fu, J.; Zhang, D.; Yang, J. A molecularly engineered zwitterionic hydrogel with strengthened anti-polyelectrolyte effect: from high-rate solar desalination to efficient electricity generation. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2023 , 33 , 2303272..

Zeng, J.; Chen, H.; Dong, L.; Guo, X. Anti-polyelectrolyte effect of zwitterionic hydrogel electrolytes enabling high-voltage zinc-ion hybrid capacitors. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2024 , 34 , 2314651..

Zhang, H.; Wang, Y.; Shi, Y.; Zhang, Y.; Yang, Y.; Wang, Y.; Cui, Y.; Guo, J.; Zhang, P.; Sun, L.; Zhang, J. Recent advances in polyoxometalate-based proton conducting materials: design strategies, conduction mechanisms, structure-function relationships and future perspectives. Nano Res. 2025 , 18 , 94907743..

Jin, D.; Qiao, F.; Zhou, Y.; Wang, J.; Cao, K.; Yang, J.; Zhao, J.; Zhou, L.; Li, H. Cu/Mo 2 C synthesized through Anderson-type polyoxometalates modulate interfacial water structure to achieve hydrogen evolution at high current density. Nano Res. 2023 , 17 , 2546−2554..

Views

Downloads

CSCD

Alert me when the article has been cited

Submit

Tools

Publicity Resources

Ultrasmall Nanoparticles Diluted Chain Entanglement in Polymer Nanocomposites

Green Fabrication of High-strength Silk Fibroin Hydrogels via Thermal Oscillation in All-aqueous Media

Direct Ink Writing 3D Printing of Hydrogel Bioelectronics

Anti-biofouling Hydrogels: Surface Hydration, Classification, and Biomedical Applications

Two-way Shape Memory Effect of Polycaprolactone-based Polyurethane via Synergistic Role of Hydrogen Bonding and Crystallization Tuned by Malic Acid

Related Author

Sheng-Chao Chai

Tian-Yang Xu

Xiao Cao

Gang Wang

Quan Chen

Hao-Long Li

Yu-Si Long

Mei-Yi Lu

Related Institution

State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University

State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Changchun SinoBiomaterials Co., Ltd.

School of Life Science and Technology, Changchun University of Science and Technology

State Key Laboratory of Integrated Optoelectronics, Key Laboratory of UV Light-Emitting Materials and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Physics, Northeast Normal University

⁰