Burn injury has become a crucial public health issue worldwide. It is necessary to explore new methods to reduce heat damage and improve healing efficiency during
burn injury treatment. In this study, a kind of
hydrogel combining heat storage capacity and thermal conductivity was fabricated via a one-pot method for
burn therapy. The novel
hydrogel was easily prepared by in situ cross-linking polymerization, using poly(
ethylene glycol) (PEG) derivatives, oligo(
ethylene glycol)
methacrylate and 2-(2-methoxyethoxy) ethyl
methacrylate, as thermally responsive base materials and hydroxylated multiwall
carbon nanotubes (CNT-
OH) as thermally conductive fillers. By dispersing CNT-
OH, a thermally conductive network was formed in the
hydrogel, leading to an increase in the thermal conductivity. The cooling performance, thermal conductivity, heat storage property, swelling performance, rheological and mechanical properties, biocompatibility, in vivo cooling effect, and wound healing properties of the prepared
hydrogel were systematically investigated. The
hydrogel consisted of thermally responsive PEG derivatives, and CNT-
OH performed a function of rapid heat absorption, further reduced thermal damage, and promoted wound healing. The improved cooling performance of the
hydrogel was ascribed to the improved thermal conductivity, enhanced heat storage capacity, and good adhesive ability. Thus, the
hydrogel has great potential to be practically applied in
burn therapy, laser treatment, cooling fabrics, heat-
protective clothing, and other emergency scenarios.