Fabrication of Janus graphene oxide hybrid nanosheets by Pickering emulsion template for self-healing nanocomposite hydrogels

Abstract Janus nanomaterials can be highlighted to design a series of smart materials with the remarkable characteristic of two different properties or constituents. In this manuscript, functional Janus graphene oxide-type (GO-type) nanomaterials were fabricated by Pickering emulsion template and successfully applied to develop of dual self-healing nanocomposite hydrogels. Asymmetric functionalization of Janus nanosheets were achieved in typical oil-in-water Pickering emulsion by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and mussel-inspired chemistry. Poly(2-(acryloyloxy)ethyl ferrocenecarboxylate) (PMAEFc) and polydopamine (PDA) were unsymmetrically grafted on the two sides of GO (Janus GO-PMAEF/PDA (JGNs)), which successfully applied in self-healing nanocomposite hydrogels. The collaborative effect of metal-ligand coordination and host-guest interaction make the dual self-healing hydrogels have excellent self-healing properties (self-healing efficiency can reach to 93.4% within 1 h) and mechanical strength (tensile strength of 0.94 MPa and strain of 508.5%). Therefore, these chemical asymmetric JGNs have outstandingly application prospect in the development of smart materials.