Kumar Anurag, Haque Abu Naser Md Ahsanul, Naebe Maryam, Khandelwal Mudrika
Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH), Hyderabad, Telangana, 502285, India.
Institute for Frontier Materials, Deakin University Waurn Ponds Campus, Geelong, Australia.
Small. 2025 Aug;21(31):e2501880. doi: 10.1002/smll.202501880. Epub 2025 Jun 5.
Bacterial cellulose (BC) biosynthesis is a dynamic process where its 3D nanofibrous network evolves with culture time, offering ample opportunities to tailor the network for specific applications. Herein, BC-derived macrofiber with exceptional mechanical and functional properties is reported. The biosynthesis parameters are set to get the First Formed Film (FFF) at the liquid-air interface on the second day of culture, which has a homogeneous network structure, unlike the layered structures observed in subsequent films. The FFF ultralong nanofibers are converted into macrofiber through controlled plastic deformation and twisting along the fiber length. The resulting fibers exhibit exceptional mechanical properties, including a tensile strength of (2.5 GPa) and a specific strength of (856.16 MPa g⁻¹cm ), the highest reported for cellulose-based fibers. The fibers retain approximately 95% of the stiffness of BC nanofibers, demonstrating excellent nanoscale-to-macroscale property transfer. Notably, this high strength is achieved without any chemical modification or cross-linking. Also, FFF hydrogels are functionalized in situ to fabricate magnetic, antibacterial, and conductive fibers. They demonstrate excellent functionality transfer from hydrogel to fiber- positioning them as ideal candidates for surgical sutures and soft robotics applications. This study successfully highlights the synergy between BC biosynthesis and its morphology in designing high-performance materials.
细菌纤维素（BC）的生物合成是一个动态过程，其三维纳米纤维网络会随着培养时间而演变，这为针对特定应用定制该网络提供了充足的机会。在此，报道了具有卓越机械和功能特性的BC衍生宏观纤维。通过设置生物合成参数，在培养第二天的液-气界面获得初生膜（FFF），其具有均匀的网络结构，这与后续膜中观察到的分层结构不同。FFF超长纳米纤维通过可控的塑性变形和沿纤维长度的扭转转化为宏观纤维。所得纤维表现出卓越的机械性能，包括拉伸强度为2.5吉帕斯卡，比强度为856.16兆帕斯卡克⁻¹厘米，这是基于纤维素的纤维中报道的最高值。这些纤维保留了约95%的BC纳米纤维的刚度，证明了从纳米尺度到宏观尺度的优异性能转移。值得注意的是，这种高强度是在没有任何化学改性或交联的情况下实现的。此外，FFF水凝胶被原位功能化以制造磁性、抗菌和导电纤维。它们展示了从水凝胶到纤维的优异功能转移——使其成为手术缝合线和软机器人应用的理想候选材料。这项研究成功地突出了BC生物合成及其形态在设计高性能材料方面的协同作用。
