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Synthesis and Properties of Polyelectrolyte Gels with Embedded Voids
Author(s) -
Komarova Galina A.,
Starodubtsev Sergey G.,
Khokhlov Alexei R.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
macromolecular chemistry and physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.57
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1521-3935
pISSN - 1022-1352
DOI - 10.1002/macp.200500090
Subject(s) - polyelectrolyte , copolymer , emulsion , chemical engineering , polymer chemistry , pulmonary surfactant , swelling , diffusion , ionic bonding , polymer , monomer , chemistry , acrylamide , materials science , organic chemistry , ion , physics , engineering , thermodynamics
Summary: “Swiss‐cheese” polyelectrolyte gels, i.e., gels containing isolated voids filled with water were synthesized and studied. The gels were obtained by three‐dimensional copolymerization of neutral and charged monomers in the presence of oil/water emulsion stabilized by ionic surfactant. After removal of the surfactant and droplets of oil from the gel, the latter contains voids surrounded with charged swollen polymer network. Experiments were performed with slightly cross‐linked gels of copolymers of sodium‐2‐acrylamide‐2‐methyl‐1‐propanesulfonate with acrylamide. The gel containing voids absorbs much more anionic dyes than the control gel with the same chemical composition of the network obtained in homogeneous solution. This effect is due to strongly inhomogeneous distribution of the low molecular weight anions between the voids and the anionic matrix of the gel. The study of diffusion of the dyes in the gels with and without voids and of the kinetics of their swelling and collapse shows that the voids in the gel are isolated.Optical micrograph of polyelectrolyte gel with embedded emulsion droplets.