KAIST develops 'universal biomaterial' that sticks to wounds and spreads water instantly

A new biomaterial that rapidly adheres to wounds to stop bleeding and, when applied as a coating on glass or plastic, causes water to spread instantly rather than bead up has been developed by researchers at KAIST.

KAIST announced Tuesday that a research team led by Professor Lee Haeshin of the Department of Chemistry had developed "CHI-B," a polyphenol bio-adhesive material combining strong adhesion with superhydrophilic surface treatment. The material uses the natural polymer chitosan and a biomass-derived compound called 1,2,4-benzenetriol (BTO).

CHI-B's defining feature is that it delivers two distinct functions within a single material. When applied to a wound, it adheres quickly to the bleeding site and seals it; when used as a coating on glass, plastic or similar surfaces, it creates a superhydrophilic surface on which water spreads immediately upon contact.

The research team successfully applied a uniform CHI-B coating to materials with widely differing properties, including glass, PTFE (commonly known as Teflon), PET used in plastic bottles, PS used in packaging, and titanium dioxide (TiO₂). Adding just 10 parts per million of urea was sufficient to achieve the superhydrophilic surface effect.

The material also proved highly durable. Surfaces treated with CHI-B remained stable after more than a month of washing and continued to spread water effectively even after a year.

The team also confirmed CHI-B's potential as a medical hemostatic material. When a CHI-B sponge was applied to a liver wound in mice, blood loss was significantly lower than in the control group. The material adheres rapidly to the bleeding site and physically seals the wound to aid hemostasis. It also demonstrated high biocompatibility in cytotoxicity tests.

The team also dramatically simplified the manufacturing process. Conventional chitosan-based bio-adhesives require expensive coupling agents for chemical bonding, followed by multiple purification steps and lengthy dialysis.

The researchers took advantage of BTO's natural tendency to oxidize when exposed to oxygen in the air. As oxidized BTO transforms into a highly reactive structure, it bonds rapidly with chitosan — eliminating the need for separate chemical coupling agents or heating, and allowing production at room temperature in under 30 minutes.

The team scaled production up to tens of liters in the laboratory, confirming the material's potential for mass manufacturing. Freeze-dried CHI-B sponges dissolved completely in water in about 15 seconds and maintained high solubility in neutral environments similar to the human body.

The team plans to expand the material's applications to include antifouling coatings, surface treatment for biosensors and medical devices, industrial functional coatings, and medical adhesive and hemostatic materials. It will conduct further verification of performance, stability and long-term storage for each application, and pursue commercialization through corporate partnerships and technology transfer.

"We have achieved both strong adhesion and superhydrophilic surface properties — the ability to spread water rapidly — within a single biomaterial," Lee said. "The manufacturing process is simple and we have confirmed the potential to scale up production, so we expect it to find applications across a wide range of fields, from hemostatic materials to medical devices, biosensors and functional surface treatments."

The findings were published in the international academic journal Materials Horizons.