Fungal chitin offers new route to tougher hydrogels for medical devices and soft robots
Researchers at the Department of Energy's (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville, have made an advance by using a natural substance from fungi called chitin to create hydrogels that are significantly stronger and tougher. This new material could lead to safer medical devices, longer-lasting coatings and other innovations that improve everyday…
Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville, have discovered a novel method for creating tougher hydrogels using chitin, a natural substance derived from fungi. Hydrogels are flexible, water-rich materials commonly used in medical implants, contact lenses, and soft robots.
Fungal chitin, unlike chitin from crustaceans, is hypoallergenic and does not require extensive processing to remove contaminants. The ORNL team extracted chitin from various fungi using a gentle pretreatment and ball-milling process, which preserves the material's structure and improves its strength and toughness. This new approach could lead to safer medical devices, longer-lasting coatings, and more advanced soft robotics.
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