Physically crosslinked, montmorillonite-reinforced hydrogels for self-healing and tough adhesive wound dressings

Traditional wound dressings often fail to address the dynamic mechanical and biochemical demands of complex wound microenvironments, necessitating advanced materials with multifunctional adaptability. Herein, a multifunctional composite hydrogel (PCTM) was developed by integrating polyvinyl alcohol, carboxymethyl chitosan, tannic acid, and montmorillonite (MMT) through a synergistic physical crosslinking strategy. The freeze–thaw process, combined with hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions, enhanced anti-swelling capacity (equilibrium ratio: 1.11 in PBS). MMT reinforcement significantly improved mechanical robustness, achieving a tensile strength of 994.2 kPa, compressive strength of 461.6 kPa, and energy dissipation of 15.4 kJ/m 3 , ensuring structural stability under repetitive deformations. Dynamic reversible interactions endowed rapid self-healing (75.9% strength recovery) and strong tissue adhesion (26.2 kPa), critical for mechanically active wound regions. The hydrogel prepared in this work shows promising potential for biomedical applications, particularly as a skin wound dressing. Graphical abstract