Network defects in polyacrylamide gels

Thermodynamics, kinetics and optimization of catalytic behavior of polyacrylamide-entrapped carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase) for prospective industrial use

In the current study, kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of free and polyacrylamide-immobilized CMCase were analyzed. The maximum immobilization yield of 34 ± 1.7% was achieved at 11% acrylamide. The enthalpy of activation (ΔH) of free and immobilized enzyme was found to be 13.61 and 0.29 kJ mol^-1, respectively. Irreversible inactivation energy of free and immobilized CMCase was 96.43 and 99.01 kJ mol^-1, respectively. Similarly, the enthalpy of deactivation (ΔH_d) values for free and immobilized enzyme were found to be in the range of 93.51-93.76 kJ mol^-1 and 96.08-96.33 kJ mol^-1, respectively. Michaelis-Menten constant (K_m) increased from 1.267 ± 0.06 to 1.5891 ± 0.07 mg ml^-1 and the maximum reaction rate (V_max) value decreased (8319.47 ± 416 to 5643.34 ± 282 U ml^-1 min^-1) after immobilization. Due to wide pH and temperature stability profile with sufficient reusing efficiency up to three successive cycles, the immobilized CMCase might be useful for various industrial processes.

Curing of Cellulose Hydrogels by UV Radiation for Mechanical Reinforcement

The use of biomaterials as a replacement for thermoplastic polymers is an environmentally sound strategy. In this work, hydrogels of cellulose isolated from wheat husk were modified by UV irradiation (353 nm) to improve mechanical performance. The cellulose was dissolved with a solvent system N,N-dimethylacetamide/lithium chloride (DMAc/LiCl). Infrared spectroscopy showed that the peak height at 1016 cm^-1, associated with the C-O bonds of the glycosidic ring, increases with irradiation time. It was determined that the increase in this signal is related to photodegradation, the product of a progressive increase in exposure to UV radiation. The viscoelastic behavior, determined by dynamic mechanical analysis and rotational rheometry, was taken as the most important parameter of this research, showing that the best results are recorded with 15 min of UV treatment. Therefore, at this time or less, the chemical crosslinking is predominant over the photodegradation, producing an increase in the modules, while with 20 min the photodegradation is such that the modules suffer a significant reduction.

The hierarchical bulk molecular structure of poly(acrylamide) hydrogels: beyond the fishing net

The polymeric structure of hydrogels is commonly presented in the literature as resembling a fishing net. However, this simple view cannot fully capture all the unique properties of these materials. Crucial for a detailed description of the bulk structure in free-radical polymerized vinylic hydrogels is a thorough understanding of the cross-linker distribution. This work focuses on the precise role of the tetra-functional cross-linker in the hydrogel system: acrylamide-N,N'-methylenebis(acrylamide). Clusters of crosslinker smaller than 4 nm and their agglomerates, as well as polymer domains with sizes from the 100 nm to the μm-range, have been identified by means of both X-ray and visible-light scattering. Placed in the context of the extensive literature on this system, these observations demonstrate the heterogeneous organisation of the polymer within the hydrogel network structure, and can be accounted for by the different polymerization behavior of the monomer and crosslinker. Together with polymer-network chain-length approximations based on swelling experiments and structural observations with scanning electron microscopy, these results indicate a hierarchical structure of the polymer network surrounding pockets of water.

High-strength cellulose-polyacrylamide hydrogels: Mechanical behavior and structure depending on the type of cellulose

Two types of stiff and high-strength composite hydrogels possessing the structure of interpenetrating polymer networks were synthesized via free-radical polymerization of acrylamide carried out straight within the previously formed physical network of regenerated plant cellulose or bacterial cellulose (PC and BC respectively) that was swollen in the reactive solution. The mechanical behavior of synthesized hydrogels subjected to the action of compressive deformations with different amplitude values was studied. The analysis of the stress-strain curves of compression tests of the hydrogels of both types obtained in different test conditions demonstrates the substantial difference in their mechanical behavior. Both the PC- and BC-based hydrogels withstand successfully the one-shot compression with the amplitude up to 80%, but in the conditions of the multiple compression tests (cyclic compressions) during the subsequent compression acts the dramatic increase in the stiffness of the BC-based hydrogels was observed at the deformation region beyond 60%. This effect can be explained by the deep reorganization of the intermolecular structure of the material with the stress-induced reorientation of BC micro-fibrils. Submicron- and micron-scale specific features of structures of composite hydrogels of both types were studied by cryo-scanning electron microscopy to explain the peculiarities of the mechanical effects observed.

UV Dose Governs UV-Polymerized Polyacrylamide Hydrogel Modulus

Polyacrylamide (PAA) hydrogels have become a widely used tool whose easily tunable mechanical properties, biocompatibility, thermostability, and chemical inertness make them invaluable in many biological applications, such as cell mechanosensitivity studies. Currently, preparation of PAA gels involves mixtures of acrylamide, bisacrylamide, a source of free radicals, and a chemical stabilizer. This method, while generally well accepted, has its drawbacks: long polymerization times, unstable and toxic reagents, and tedious preparation. Alternatively, PAA gels could be made by free radical polymerization (FRP) using ultraviolet (UV) photopolymerization, a method which is quicker, less tedious, and less toxic. Here, we describe a simple strategy based on total UV energy for determining the optimal UV crosslinking conditions that lead to optimal hydrogel modulus.

Optimization by experimental design of polyacrylamide gel composition as support for enzyme immobilization by entrapment

We have developed a methodology based on experimental design, to optimize a polyacrylamide gel as the support for enzyme immobilization, taking advantage of all the properties which this type of gel has. Monomer and crosslinking agent proportions are responsible for both the porous structure and pore size of the gel. A correct selection of those variables and suitable synthesis conditions leads to an increase in the activity retained by the gel. The path of steepest ascent method was used to obtain the relative maximum activity. The maximum retained activity was chosen with a central composite design in terms of the gel composition. The retained activity in the network, loss activity in the wash water, and loss activity due to steric impediment or blockage was modeled in terms of the variables responsible for the gel structure. (c) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 53: 497-506, 1997.

Using in situ rheology to characterize the microstructure in photopolymerized polyacrylamide gels for DNA electrophoresis

Photopolymerized cross-linked polyacrylamide hydrogels are attractive sieving matrix formulations for DNA electrophoresis owing to their rapid polymerization times and the potential to locally tailor the gel pore structure through spatial variation of illumination intensity. This capability is especially important in microfluidic systems, where photopolymerization allows gel matrices to be precisely positioned within complex microchannel networks. Separation performance is also directly related to the nanoscale gel pore structure, which is in turn strongly influenced by polymerization kinetics. Unfortunately, detailed studies of the interplay among polymerization kinetics, mechanical properties, and structural morphology are lacking in photopolymerized hydrogel systems. In this paper, we address this issue by performing a series of in situ dynamic small-amplitude oscillatory shear measurements during photopolymerization of cross-linked polyacrylamide electrophoresis gels to investigate the relationship between rheology and parameters associated with the gelation environment including UV intensity, monomer and cross-linker composition, and reaction temperature. In general, we find that the storage modulus G' increases with increasing initial monomer concentration, cross-linker concentration, and polymerization temperature. The steady-state value of G', however, exhibits a more complex dependence on UV intensity that varies with gel concentration. A simple model based on rubber elasticity theory is used to obtain estimates of the average gel pore size that are in surprisingly good agreement with corresponding data obtained from analysis of DNA electrophoretic mobility in gels cast under identical polymerization conditions.

Electrokinetics of diffuse soft interfaces. III. Interpretation of data on the polyacrylamide/water interface

Streaming potential measurements were carried out on a family of polyacrylamide-co-sodium acrylate gels cross-linked with N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide in a homemade electrokinetic cell. Measurements of the ionic conductivity within thin films of these gels allowed the equilibrium Donnan potential difference between the bulk gel and the bulk electrolyte environments to be estimated at various ionic strengths. The resulting Donnan potential data were combined with the directly measurable streaming potential data and used to evaluate the diffuse soft interface model of electrokinetics (Langmuir 2004, 20, 10324). The model introduces the concept of a gradual decay of polymer density and fixed charge density within a narrow inter-phase at the gel/solution interface. The nature of the decay at the interface has a dramatic effect on the magnitude of the streaming potential as predicted by the diffuse soft interface model. In this investigation, the gradual decay of polymer density within the inter-phase is described with a hyperbolic tangent function. For the gels mentioned, the characteristic length scale of the decay, alpha, as calculated from the fit to the model, increases significantly with decreasing ionic strength, suggesting an osmotically driven swelling of the loosely cross-linked polymer chains at the interface. The experimental data and the results of the fitting are discussed in terms of the physical picture of the interface and compared to fitting results for a model which assumes a simple step function at the gel-solution interface.

The relationship between radiation-induced chemical processes and transverse relaxation times in polymer gel dosimeters

The effects of ionizing radiation in different compositions of polymer gel dosimeters are investigated using FT-Raman spectroscopy and NMR T2 relaxation times. The dosimeters are manufactured from different concentrations of comonomers (acrylamide and N,N'-methylene-bis-acrylamide) dispersed in different concentrations of an aqueous gelatin matrix. Results are analysed using a model of fast exchange of magnetization between three proton pools. The fraction of protons in each pool is determined using the known chemical composition of the dosimeter and FT-Raman spectroscopy. Based on these results, the physical and chemical processes in interplay in the dosimeters are examined in view of their effect on the changes in T2. The precipitation of growing macroradicals and the scavenging of free radicals by gelatin are used to explain the rate of polymerization. The model describes the changes in T2 as a function of the absorbed dose up to 50 Gy for the different compositions. This is expected to aid the theoretical design of new, more efficient dosimeters, since it was demonstrated that the optimum dosimeter (i.e, with the lowest dose resolution) must have a range of relaxation times which match the range of T2 values which can be determined with the lowest uncertainty using an MRI scanner.

Characterization of hydrogels using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Literature relevant to characterization of hydrogels and cross-linked polymer networks using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has been extensively reviewed. After a brief introduction to the fundamentals of NMR spectroscopy, a variety of NMR techniques are considered, including 13C NMR of swollen polymer networks, end-group studies by 13C NMR with labelled initiators, spin-spin and spin-lattice relaxational studies to distinguish species based upon mobility, and characterization of specific interactions using the nuclear Overhauser effect. Finally, a brief treatment of the characterization of polymer structural quantities such as composition, tacticity and sequence distribution by NMR spectroscopic studies is presented. Although our discussion is representative rather than exhaustive, we are confident that this review will demonstrate the utility of NMR spectroscopy for characterization of hydrogel networks which have applications as biomaterials.

On the kinetics of monomer incorporation into polyacrylamide gels, as investigated by capillary zone electrophoresis

The kinetics of monomer incorporation into a polyacrylamide gel have been studied in a photopolymerization system comprising 100 microM methylene blue in presence of a red-ox system, 1 mM sodium toluenesulfinate (reducer) and 50 microM diphenyliodonium chloride (oxidizer). A precise assessment of gel point (pc) was obtained in a droplet chamber, in which argon was gently bubbled with a fused silica capillary into the reaction mixture. At pc, 50% (+/- 3) acrylamide was incorporated into the matrix, vs. 80% (+/- 4) N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide. This incorporation level remained the same when polymerized in the 2-36 degrees C temperature range. Incorporation continued almost linearly for acrylamide up to 80% conversion. The reaction was continued up to 55 min (at 2 degrees C), at which point bisacrylamide had been essentially consumed (> 99.5% incorporation) and acrylamide had reacted (95%). At 2 degrees C, after gelation, the gel became progressively turbid (the Tyndall effect plateauing at 50 min), but it remained fully transparent if, at the gel point, reaction was continued at 50 degrees C. The consumption of the pendant double bonds of Bis followed the progression of turbidity. It is concluded that, by gelation at 2 degrees C, the nascent chains form clusters held together by hydrogen bonds (melting point at 28 degrees C); such clusters are subsequently "frozen" in the three-dimensional space as the pendant double bonds in the chains react progressively. Such turbid matrices are more porous and less elastic than when the gel is polymerized at 50 degrees C. This process is similar to the "lateral aggregation" occurring when gels are formed in presence of a polymer in solution (e.g. 10 KDa polyethylene glycol; Righetti et al., Electrophoresis 1992, 13, 587-594).