Tough ion gels composed of coordinatively crosslinked polymer networks using ZIF-8 nanoparticles as multifunctional crosslinkers.

Constructing crosslinked polymer networks reversible interactions is a promising approach to recover the mechanical strength of damaged gels. In addition, by designing effective reversible crosslinks, the mechanical strength of the gel can be enhanced through energy dissipation based on the destruction of the crosslinks by an applied force. In this study, we introduced zeolitic imidazole framework-8 nanoparticles (ZIF-8 NPs), which acted as multifunctional crosslinkers, to provide multipoint coordination bonding with a poly(,-dimethylacrylamide)-based polymer network in a gel containing an ionic liquid.