A simple hydrogel device with flow-through channels to maintain dissipative non-equilibrium phenomena

The development of autonomous chemical systems that could imitate the properties of living matter, is a challenging problem at the meeting point of materials science and nonequilibrium chemistry. Here we design a multi-channel gel reactor in which out-of-equilibrium conditions are maintained by antagonistic chemical gradients. Our device is a rectangular hydrogel with two or more channels for the flows of separated reactants, which diffuse into the gel to react. The relative position of the channels acts as geometric control parameters, while the concentrations of the chemicals in the channels and the variable composition of the hydrogel, which affects the diffusivity of the chemicals, can be used as chemical control parameters. This flexibility allows finding easily the optimal conditions for the development of nonequilibrium phenomena. We demonstrate this straightforward operation by generating diverse spatiotemporal patterns in different chemical reactions. The use of additional channels can create interacting reaction zones.