Multicomponent Low Molecular Weight Gels and Gelators

Abstract

Most low molecular weight (LMW) hydrogels reported to date are based on a single component, which often restricts their functionality. Development of multicomponent gels (MCGs) is an emerging field in the current research because it can expand the functionality of the gels through the improvement or even introduction of properties and functionalities by the synergistic effect of individual components. Herein, LMW MCGs are discussed in terms of their formation through various noncovalent interactions, alteration/incorporation of the properties and functionality of the gels. An MCG literally means a gel containing more than one component; however, herein two-component gels have been mostly discussed as they are the most common representative of MCGs. These two-component gels can be formulated as A + B = MCG (where A/B = gel/sol), which offers three different possibilities in terms of the gelation ability of the individual components. In an MCG, molecular components can be coassembled together, producing a coassembled gel containing a single type of gel fiber, or they can be self-assembled individually, resulting in a system containing different kinds of fibers, called a self-sorted gel. Although two-component gels are the most common, a system with multi-functionalities demands development of MCGs with more than two components.