A double-network (DN) gel, first reported in 2003 by Gong and Osada, is a special kind of interpenetrating network gels showing high strength and toughness while keeping high solvent content of ~90 wt%. A tough DN gel is composed of two contrasting polymer networks, which are the brittle first network and the stretchable second network. Strengthening and toughening mechanisms of a DN gel have been extensively studied by the author and other researchers. Moreover, deformation-induced “growing” of a DN gel, which mimics metabolic reactions of living organisms, has been realized based on the unique fracture mechanism of the DN gel. In this article, how the contrasting double-network structure contributes high toughness and strength of a DN gel is briefly summarized. Also, muscle-like force-induced toughening of a DN gel through materials supply and network structure reconstruction is described.
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