Carbon nanotube-coated macroporous poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) hydrogel and its electrosensitivity

A facile method of fabricating novel CNT-coated macroporous PNIPAAm hydrogel composite was proposed. The method was based on the deposition of a dense and compact CNT layer on the pore walls of the preformed macroporous PNIPAAm hydrogel scaffold. The resulted hydrogel composite exhibited an electric current sensitivity resulting from electro-thermal conversion. When an external electric current was applied, this hydrogel composite could be electrically heated and then showed a thermally induced shrink.