Fabrication and characterization of antibacterial and adhesive hydrogel composites based on carboxymethyl cellulose,...

The limitations of conventional hydrogels have spurred a growing interest in enhancing polymeric compounds with inorganic nanoparticles to create hydrogel composites with multifunctional properties for various applications. This study reports a one-step chemical gelation system for fabricating hydrogel composites consisting of carboxymethyl cellulose, acrylamide, and gold nanoparticles. The hydrogel composites exhibited significant mechanical and adhesive strength attributed to the strong hydrogen-bonding interaction within the polymer network. Remarkably, the composites achieved a tensile strength of 22.8 MPa with a yield strain of 877.1%, a compressive strength of 346.8 MPa with a yield strain of 120%, and an adhesion strength of 246 kPa. The materials also demonstrated remarkable adhesion performance on different biological and inorganic substrates, maintaining higher adhesion stress across a range of displacements. Furthermore, the hydrogel composites exhibited superior bactericidal activity, achieving up to 98.2% efficacy against E. coli and 99.1% against S. aureus, while showing non-toxicity to mammalian cells. These findings highlight the practical potential of these hydrogel composites in applications such as wound healing and antibacterial bioadhesives.