Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing
Abstract Developing a sustainable, in-situ responsive sensing method for continuously monitoring water quality is crucial for water use and quality management globally. Conventional water quality monitoring sensors face challenges in achieving ultrafast response time and are non-recyclable. We prese...
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| Format: | Article |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59973-y |
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| author | Mengmeng Liu Hongchen Guo Yu Jun Tan Kelu Yu Qiye Guan Evgeny Zamburg Wen Cheng Xinyu Wang Lili Zhou Haiming Chen Yunxia Jin Xu Cheng Fang-Cheng Liang Baoshan Tang Hashina Parveen Anwar Ali Jingyi Yang Chaobin He Yongqing Cai Aaron Voon-Yew Thean Zhong Lin Wang Benjamin C. K. Tee |
| author_facet | Mengmeng Liu Hongchen Guo Yu Jun Tan Kelu Yu Qiye Guan Evgeny Zamburg Wen Cheng Xinyu Wang Lili Zhou Haiming Chen Yunxia Jin Xu Cheng Fang-Cheng Liang Baoshan Tang Hashina Parveen Anwar Ali Jingyi Yang Chaobin He Yongqing Cai Aaron Voon-Yew Thean Zhong Lin Wang Benjamin C. K. Tee |
| author_sort | Mengmeng Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Developing a sustainable, in-situ responsive sensing method for continuously monitoring water quality is crucial for water use and quality management globally. Conventional water quality monitoring sensors face challenges in achieving ultrafast response time and are non-recyclable. We present a self-assembly approach for a closed-loop recyclable, autonomous self-healing and transparent dielectric material with nanostructured amphiphobic surfaces (termed ‘ReSURF’). Our approach uses tribo-negative small molecules that spontaneously secrete onto the surface of the fluorine dielectric matrix via biomimetic microphase separation within minutes. ReSURF devices achieve millisecond water quality sensing response time (~6 ms), high signal-to-noise ratio (~30.7 dB) and can withstand large mechanical deformations (>760%, maximum of 1000% strain). We show ReSURF can be readily closed-loop recycled for reuse, underscoring its versatility. We further demonstrated its use in a soft stretchable fish-like robot for real-time water contamination (including perfluorooctanoic acid, a member of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and oily pollutants) assessments. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8c1f3c28f445463da477dfd9bb52b0f3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-8c1f3c28f445463da477dfd9bb52b0f32025-08-20T04:01:35ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111210.1038/s41467-025-59973-yRecyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensingMengmeng Liu0Hongchen Guo1Yu Jun Tan2Kelu Yu3Qiye Guan4Evgeny Zamburg5Wen Cheng6Xinyu Wang7Lili Zhou8Haiming Chen9Yunxia Jin10Xu Cheng11Fang-Cheng Liang12Baoshan Tang13Hashina Parveen Anwar Ali14Jingyi Yang15Chaobin He16Yongqing Cai17Aaron Voon-Yew Thean18Zhong Lin Wang19Benjamin C. K. Tee20Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeInstitute of Applied Physics and Materials Engineering, University of Macau, TaipaDepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeInstitute for Health Innovation & Technology (iHealthtech), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeInstitute of Applied Physics and Materials Engineering, University of Macau, TaipaDepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), National University of SingaporeBeijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of SciencesDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE), National University of SingaporeAbstract Developing a sustainable, in-situ responsive sensing method for continuously monitoring water quality is crucial for water use and quality management globally. Conventional water quality monitoring sensors face challenges in achieving ultrafast response time and are non-recyclable. We present a self-assembly approach for a closed-loop recyclable, autonomous self-healing and transparent dielectric material with nanostructured amphiphobic surfaces (termed ‘ReSURF’). Our approach uses tribo-negative small molecules that spontaneously secrete onto the surface of the fluorine dielectric matrix via biomimetic microphase separation within minutes. ReSURF devices achieve millisecond water quality sensing response time (~6 ms), high signal-to-noise ratio (~30.7 dB) and can withstand large mechanical deformations (>760%, maximum of 1000% strain). We show ReSURF can be readily closed-loop recycled for reuse, underscoring its versatility. We further demonstrated its use in a soft stretchable fish-like robot for real-time water contamination (including perfluorooctanoic acid, a member of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and oily pollutants) assessments.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59973-y |
| spellingShingle | Mengmeng Liu Hongchen Guo Yu Jun Tan Kelu Yu Qiye Guan Evgeny Zamburg Wen Cheng Xinyu Wang Lili Zhou Haiming Chen Yunxia Jin Xu Cheng Fang-Cheng Liang Baoshan Tang Hashina Parveen Anwar Ali Jingyi Yang Chaobin He Yongqing Cai Aaron Voon-Yew Thean Zhong Lin Wang Benjamin C. K. Tee Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing Nature Communications |
| title | Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| title_full | Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| title_fullStr | Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| title_short | Recyclable self-secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| title_sort | recyclable self secreting autonomous healing dielectrics for millisecond water quality sensing |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59973-y |
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