TY - JOUR
T1 - Investigation of a novel freeze-thaw process for the production of drug delivery hydrogels
AU - Nugent, Michael J.D.
AU - Hanley, Austin
AU - Tomkins, Paul T.
AU - Higginbotham, Clement L.
PY - 2005/12
Y1 - 2005/12
N2 - Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a water-soluble, biocompatible and biodegradable polymer, which has been widely applied in biomedical fields. In this paper, novel physically cross-linked hydrogels composed of PVA and comprising a blend of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with different concentrations of HCI, NaOH and NaCl are prepared by a freezing/thawing treatment of aqueous solutions. The structure and complexation of the electrolytes were studied by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The mechanical properties were investigated using rheometery and the thermal transitions of the hydrogels were examined by modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC). Freeze/thawed PVA gels containing NaOH showed overall enhanced swelling with increased mechanical strength over traditional gels prepared by chemical or irradiative crosslinking techniques. These novel physically cross-linked hydrogels show promise for a variety of biomedical and drug delivery applications.
AB - Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a water-soluble, biocompatible and biodegradable polymer, which has been widely applied in biomedical fields. In this paper, novel physically cross-linked hydrogels composed of PVA and comprising a blend of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with different concentrations of HCI, NaOH and NaCl are prepared by a freezing/thawing treatment of aqueous solutions. The structure and complexation of the electrolytes were studied by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The mechanical properties were investigated using rheometery and the thermal transitions of the hydrogels were examined by modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC). Freeze/thawed PVA gels containing NaOH showed overall enhanced swelling with increased mechanical strength over traditional gels prepared by chemical or irradiative crosslinking techniques. These novel physically cross-linked hydrogels show promise for a variety of biomedical and drug delivery applications.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=29144469246&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10856-005-4722-7
DO - 10.1007/s10856-005-4722-7
M3 - Article
C2 - 16362215
AN - SCOPUS:29144469246
SN - 0957-4530
VL - 16
SP - 1149
EP - 1158
JO - Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Medicine
JF - Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Medicine
IS - 12
ER -