Novel Polymer Gels: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications (2nd Edition)

Dear Colleagues,

Building on the success of the first edition, we are excited to launch a broader second edition of our Special Issue on gels—encompassing both polymeric and inorganic gel systems. This edition aims to provide a multidisciplinary platform for researchers studying soft, hybrid, and colloidal materials with gel-like behavior, including synthetic polymers, biopolymers, nanocomposites, mineral-based gels, and gel-derived functional structures.

https://www.mdpi.com/journal/gels/special_issues/M4N7H1D0CO

Gels—including hydrogels, cryogels, aerogels, ionogels, nanogels, supramolecular gels, and even cementitious gels—play a central role in health, environmental, construction, food, energy, and sensing technologies. With their capacity for tunable porosity, mechanical adaptability, and functionalization, gels are being increasingly integrated across emerging scientific domains.

We invite original research articles, reviews, and perspective papers addressing new materials, formulations, processes, and applications of gels across the following research areas.

Topics of Interest

1. Synthesis and Processing

• Universal design strategies for physically and chemically crosslinked gels (e.g., radical polymerization, sol–gel, ionic crosslinking, coordination, or enzymatic processes).
• Green synthesis using sustainable monomers or waste-derived feedstocks.
• Hybrid gels from organic–inorganic systems or protein–polysaccharide and polymer–nanoparticle assemblies.
• Gelation in cementitious materials, including calcium–silicate–hydrate (C–S–H), alumino-silicate gels, and geopolymer precursors.
• Emerging fabrication tools, such as 3D/4D printing, microfluidics, lithographic patterning, and freeze-drying.

2. Material Types

• All classes of polymer gels, including synthetic polymers (e.g., PEG, PVA, PAN, PDMAEMA, and PHEMA), natural biopolymers (e.g., cellulose, chitin, alginate, gelatin, silk, and kefiran), and hybrid formulations.
• Inorganic and mineral-based gels, such as silica, titania, clay, and cementitious gels, used in construction and water treatment.
• Stimuli-responsive gels (pH, heat, redox, light, and magnetism).
• Ionic gels, conductive gels, shape-memory gels, and reversible sol–gel systems.

3. Characterization and Functionalization

• Spectroscopic, microscopic, and scattering tools to investigate nanostructure, gelation kinetics, and crosslinking behavior.
• Swelling/deswelling, mechanical robustness, self-healing, and viscoelastic profiles.
• Crystallinity, porosity, phase transitions, and degradation mechanisms.
• Surface functionalization for bioactivity, adhesion, wettability, or antimicrobial action.

4. Advanced Applications

• Biomedicine: wound dressings, scaffolds, injectable gels, drug/peptide/protein delivery, cancer therapy, tissue regeneration, and biosensors.
• Environmental and Agricultural: Water purification, heavy metal removal, slow-release fertilizers, algae control, and bioremediation.
• Food Systems: Edible films, bioactive coatings, texturizing gels, and delivery of probiotics/antioxidants.
• Construction and Infrastructure: cement-based gels, self-healing concrete, geopolymer gels, and fire-resistant composites.
• Energy: gel electrolytes, solar cell components, thermal insulation aerogels, supercapacitor, and battery binders.
• Electronics and Robotics: stretchable circuits, tactile sensors, artificial muscles, and dielectric elastomer actuators.

5. Cross-Cutting Techniques

• Multi-material 3D printing of gels with spatial control of properties.
• Nanostructured gels templated by CNCs, carbon dots, graphene, MXene, and MOFs.
• Synchrotron, neutron, or advanced imaging for in situ tracking of gel behavior.
• Rheological modeling and simulation of gel systems under operational loads.

This Special Issue invites original research articles, reviews, and perspectives from researchers in academia, industry, and government laboratories that provide insights into the current state of the art, challenges, and future directions in the field of novel polymer gels, aiming to foster collaboration and innovation in this exciting and rapidly evolving field.

Dr. Amin Babaei-Ghazvini
Guest Editor

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 2100 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.

• polymer gels
• chemical and physical crosslinking
• stimuli-responsive
• self-healing
• drug delivery
• tissue engineering
• soft robotics
• sensors
• environmental