Dialdehyde xylan-based sustainable, stable, and catalytic liquid metal nano-inks

Liquid metal (LM)-based nano-inks are facing challenges for their use in wearable electronics due to their low colloidal/chemical stability, cost, potential hazards, and the lack of multifunction. Here, we demonstrate a dialdehyde xylan (DAX) stabilizing LM ink encompassing low-cost, long-term stability, biocompatibility, and catalytic activity. DAX with a high molecular weight was obtained by converting the industrial pulping byproducts, xylan, in water directly with sodium periodate (NaIO4) at room temperature. The DAX/LM ink revealed remarkable chemical and colloidal stability for a period of approximately 7 d, as well as high affinity to various substrates. Compared with other LM nano-inks, the DAX/LM ink showed a remarkable catalytic feature for ultrafast polymerization of vinyl monomers, as well as chemical reactivity to construct double network (DN) gels with motion-sensing properties. This work holds promises for the high value-added utilization of lignocellulosic biomass in the fields of future flexible electronic materials.