Recent Developments and Emerging Trends in Polyelectrolyte Gels

Dear Colleagues,

Polyelectrolyte (PE) gels, recognized for their ionizable functional groups, consist of charged monomers and counterions. They are stabilized through various interactions, including electrostatic, van der Waals forces, ionic, hydrogen bonding, and chemical crosslinking. Over the past few decades, these PE gels have been intensely studied, both experimentally and theoretically, to understand the complex relationship between their electrostatics and polymer nature.

These dynamically complex PE gels have attracted considerable attention due to their extensive applicability. For instance, there is a growing trend towards designing PE gels that mimic natural materials such as cartilage and mucus. These have potential applications in the biomedical field, particularly in tissue engineering and drug delivery. Self-healing PE gels have also been developed for applications in soft robotics and wearable technology. Additionally, active research is being conducted on PE gels that can respond to external stimuli like pH, temperature, or light. The advent of 3D printing technology has enabled the creation of complex structures from PE gels with remarkable precision. Furthermore, there is an increasing focus on sustainability and biocompatibility in PE gel development. This includes using natural polymers and renewable resources as well as developing gels that are non-toxic and compatible with living tissues.

This Special Issue, entitled “Recent Developments and Emerging Trends in Polyelectrolyte Gels”, is dedicated to highlighting the latest advancements in the fabrication, characterization, and analysis of PE gels through innovative approaches. It also showcases their advanced applications. We invite submissions of new findings on the development of PE gels and warmly welcome both theoretical and experimental studies.

Dr. Zhuoyuan Zheng
Dr. Jie Zhou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Gels is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• polyelectrolyte gels
• synthesis and characterization
• theoretical modeling
• structure–property relationships
• advanced applications