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Biodegradable superabsorbent hydrogel for water holding in soil and controlled‐release fertilizer
Author(s) -
Sarmah Dimpee,
Karak Niranjan
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.48495
Subject(s) - superabsorbent polymer , self healing hydrogels , absorption of water , acrylic acid , fertilizer , polymer , materials science , controlled release , porosity , chemical engineering , starch , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , urea , polymer chemistry , chemistry , copolymer , composite material , organic chemistry , nanotechnology , engineering
The bio‐based environment‐friendly functional polymers are the most desired materials for the society. Thus, a superabsorbent hydrogel (SAH) of starch‐modified poly(acrylic acid) was reported and the concentrations of reactants, initiators, and crosslinkers were optimized to achieve the highest water absorption (>700 g/g). The chemical structure of SAH was supported by solid‐state 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance and Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopic studies. The hydrogels were found to be biodegradable and possess high water absorption capacity. After the addition of 0.25% of the hydrogel, water‐holding capacity of the soil was enhanced by 120%. Significant effect was also observed on bulk density and porosity of the soil after the addition of SAH. Furthermore, urea‐encapsulated SAH can be used as a controlled release fertilizer for crops, as indicated by a preliminary study on the growth rate of chick pea ( Cicer arietinum ) plant. Thus, SAH has the potential to be used as a controlled‐release carrier and water‐conserving agent in different fields. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137 , 48495.