Effects of molecular weight on thermoreversible gelation and gel elasticity of methylcellulose in aqueous solution

The Impact of High-Pressure Homogenization and Thermal Processing on the Functional Properties of De-Fatted Chickpea Flour Dispersion

Defatted chickpea flour (DCF), a rich source of protein and starch, is frequently utilized in the food industry. Two crucial methods of modifying food materials are high-pressure homogenization (HPH) and heat treatment (HT). This study investigates the effect of co-treatment (HPH-HT) on the particle size, rheological behavior, and thermal characteristics of DCF suspensions. The results indicate that both HPH and HT can result in a more uniform distribution of particle size in the suspensions. The effect of HPH on G' was observed to be reductionary, whereas HT increased it. Nevertheless, the HPH-HT treatment further amplified G' (notably in high-concentration DCF), which demonstrates that the solid properties of DCF are improved. The apparent viscosity of the suspensions increased with individual and combined treatments, with the HPH-HT treatment of DCF12% exhibiting the most significant increase (from 0.005 to 9.5 Pa·s). The rheological behavior of DCF8% with HPH-HT treatment was found to be comparable to that of DCF12% treated only with HT. In conclusion, HPH-HT treatment shows a synergistic impact of HPH and HT on the rheological properties of DCF suspensions, however, it has limited effect on the particle size distribution and freeze-thaw stability.

Investigation of Thermal Gel Formation of Methylcellulose in Glycols Using DSC and XRD

Novel compositions of methylcellulose in ethylene, propylene and butylene glycol were investigated for their thermal gel formation. These compositions have previously been found useful for inkjet-printing-based additive manufacturing processes as support materials. Experimental techniques such as viscosity measurements between 20 °C–150 °C–20 °C, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used and the results showed that the gel formation upon cooling is caused by polymer–polymer association. The results also show that, for methylcellulose, propylene glycol is a better solvent than ethylene glycol and butylene glycol. Since no chemical reaction is involved, these gels can be used as support materials for jetting-based additive manufacturing processes.

Viscoelasticity and Solution Stability of Cyanoethylcellulose with Different Molecular Weights in Aqueous Solution

Water-soluble cellulose ethers are widely used as stabilizers, thickeners, and viscosity modifiers in many industries. Understanding rheological behavior of the polymers is of great significance to the effective control of their applications. In this work, a series of cyanoethylcellulose (CEC) samples with different molecular weights were prepared with cellulose and acrylonitrile in NaOH/urea aqueous solution under the homogeneous reaction. The rheological properties of water-soluble CECs as a function of concentration and molecular weight were investigated using shear viscosity and dynamic rheological measurements. Viscoelastic behaviors have been successfully described by the Carreau model, the Ostwald-de-Waele equation, and the Cox–Merz rule. The entanglement concentrations were determined to be 0.6, 0.85, and 1.5 wt% for CEC-11, CEC-7, and CEC-3, respectively. All of the solutions exhibited viscous behavior rather than a clear sol-gel transition in all tested concentrations. The heterogeneous nature of CEC in an aqueous solution was determined from the Cox–Merz rule due to the coexistence of single chain complexes and aggregates. In addition, the CEC aqueous solutions showed good thermal and time stability, and the transition with temperature was reversible.

Thermoviscosifying Smart Polymers for Oil and Gas Production: State of the Art

Water-soluble polymers have been extensively used in all sections of the oil and gas upstream industry, but their inherent thermothinning behaviour has limited their applications in harsh environments. To address this issue, thermoviscosifying (or "thermothickening") polymers (TVPs) whose aqueous solution viscosity automatically increases upon increasing the temperature were introduced in the early 1990s. This review first recalls the background for developing such smart materials, followed by demonstrating the mechanism of thermothickening. Next, three major TVPs including N-alkyl substituted acrylamide copolymers, grafted polyethers, and cellulose derivatives are summarized with respect to their structure-property relationship, then their practical trials or potential uses in oil and gas drilling fluids, cementing slurries, hydraulic fracturing, steam flooding, and enhanced oil recovery are discussed. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of the current TVPs are commented and future prospects are discussed to close this review.

Impact-induced gelation in aqueous methylcellulose solutions

Inverse-freezing materials were known to solidify when heated – now a new stimulus is shown to induce this transition within microseconds’ timescales: mechanical impacts.

Methylcellulose Based Thermally Reversible Hydrogels

The creation of single and multilayered adult stem cells (ASCs) sheets is presented. The stem cell sheets preserve the cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrices and are developed by utilizing a thermally reversible methylcellulose (MC) coated tissue culture polystyrene (TCPS) dish. This technique is an improvement and a simplification of earlier noninvasive cell retrieval methods based on the use of a temperature-responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PIPAAm) coated TCPS dishes. The optimal combination of MC-water-salt was determined to be 12-14% of MC (mol. wt. of 15,000) in water with 0.5× PBS (~150 mOsm). This solution exhibited a gel formation temperature of ~32 °C. The addition (evenly spread) of 1 ml of 3 mg/ml rat tail type-I (pH adjusted to 7.5) over the MC coated surface at 37 °C improves ASC adhesion and proliferation on the methylcellulose system. Upon confluence, a continuous monolayer ASC sheet was formed on the surface of the MC hydrogel system. When the grown cell sheet was removed from the incubator and exposed to room temperature (~30 °C), it spontaneously and gradually detached from the surface of the thermoresponsive hydrogel, creating an ASC sheet.

Composites Formed from Thermoresponsive Polymers and Conductive Nanowires for Transient Electronic Systems

The disintegration of transient electronic systems after a preprogrammed time or a particular stimulus (e.g., water, light, or temperature) is fundamentally linked to the properties and behavior of the materials used for their construction. Herein, we demonstrate that polymers exhibiting lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior can work as thermoresponsive substrates for circuitry and that these materials can be coupled with conductive nanowires to form a transient electronics platform with unique, irreversible temperature-responsive behavior. The transient systems formed from composites of LCST polymers and conductive nanowires exhibit stable electrical performance in solution (T_solution > LCST) for over 24 h until a cooling stimulus triggers a rapid (within 5 min) and gigantic (3-4 orders of magnitude) transition in electrical conductance due to polymer dissolution. Using a parylene mask, we are able to fabricate thermoresponsive electrical components, such as conductive traces and parallel-plate capacitors, demonstrating the versatility of this material and patterning technique. With this unique stimulus-responsive transient system and polymers with LCSTs above room temperature (e.g., poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), methyl cellulose), we have developed a platform in which a circuit requires a source of heat to remain viable and is destroyed and vanishes once this heat source is lost.

Tunable thermosensitive behavior of multiple responsive chitin

Chitin can be dissolved and homogeneously functionalized in NaOH/urea aqueous solvent. Previously, we reported that chitin modified with acrylamide (AMC) possesses high water solubility and can undergo a sol-gel transition responding to pH and cationic ions. In this report, we further explored the thermosensitive behavior of this multiple responsive chitin. We showed that the sol-gel transition temperature of AMC can be facilely adjusted by the degree of substitution (DS), pH, polymer concentration and the presence of anions or cations. Importantly, AMC can form a hydrogel at 37 °C and return to solution at 4 °C by adjusting experimental parameters. We anticipate this multiple responsive chitin may have potential applications in injectable materials and smart drug delivery.

Methylcellulose based thermally reversible hydrogel system for tissue engineering applications

The thermoresponsive behavior of a Methylcellulose (MC) polymer was systematically investigated to determine its usability in constructing MC based hydrogel systems in cell sheet engineering applications. Solution-gel analyses were made to study the effects of polymer concentration, molecular weight and dissolved salts on the gelation of three commercially available MCs using differential scanning calorimeter and rheology. For investigation of the hydrogel stability and fluid uptake capacity, swelling and degradation experiments were performed with the hydrogel system exposed to cell culture solutions at incubation temperature for several days. From these experiments, the optimal composition of MC-water-salt that was able to produce stable hydrogels at or above 32 °C, was found to be 12% to 16% of MC (Mol. wt. of 15,000) in water with 0.5× PBS (~150mOsm). This stable hydrogel system was then evaluated for a week for its efficacy to support the adhesion and growth of specific cells in culture; in our case the stromal/stem cells derived from human adipose tissue derived stem cells (ASCs). The results indicated that the addition (evenly spread) of ~200 µL of 2 mg/mL bovine collagen type -I (pH adjusted to 7.5) over the MC hydrogel surface at 37 °C is required to improve the ASC adhesion and proliferation. Upon confluence, a continuous monolayer ASC sheet was formed on the surface of the hydrogel system and an intact cell sheet with preserved cell–cell and cell–extracellular matrix was spontaneously and gradually detached when the grown cell sheet was removed from the incubator and exposed to room temperature (~30 °C) within minutes.

Thermoresponsive hydrogel of diblock methylcellulose: formation of ribbonlike supramolecular nanostructures by self-assembly

This article provides detailed insight into the thermoresponsive gelation mechanism of industrially produced methylcellulose (MC), highlighting the importance of diblock structure with a hydrophobic sequence of 2,3,6-tri-O-methyl-glucopyranosyl units for this physicochemical property. We show herein, for the first time, that well-defined diblock MC self-assembles thermoresponsively into ribbonlike nanostructures in water. A cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) technique was used to detect the ribbonlike nanostructures formed by the diblock copolymers consisting of hydrophilic glucosyl or cellobiosyl and hydrophobic 2,3,6-tri-O-methyl-cellulosyl blocks, methyl β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)-2,3,6-tri-O-methyl-celluloside 1 (G-236MC, DP(n) = 10.7, DS = 2.65), and methyl β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)-2,3,6-tri-O-methyl-celluloside 2 (GG-236MC, DP(n) = 28.2, DS = 2.75). Rheological measurements revealed that the gel strength of a dispersion of GG-236MC (2, 2.0 wt %) in water at 70 °C was 3.0 times stronger than that of commercial MC SM-8000, although the molecular weight of GG-236MC (2) having M(w) = 8 × 10(3) g/mol was 50 times smaller than that of SM-8000 having M(w) = 4 × 10(5) g/mol. Cryo-TEM observation suggested that the hydrogel formation of the diblock copolymers could be attributed to the entanglement of ribbonlike nanostructures self-assembled by the diblock copolymers in water. The cryo-TEM micrograph of GG-236MC (2) at 5 °C showed rectangularly shaped nanostructures having a thickness from 11 to 24 nm, although G-236MC (1) at 20 °C showed no distinct self-assembled nanostructures. The ribbonlike nanostructures of GG-236MC (2) having a length ranging from 91 to 864 nm and a thickness from 8.5 to 27.1 nm were detected above 20 °C. Small-angle X-ray scattering measurements suggested that the ribbonlike nanostructures of GG-236MC (2) consisted of a bilayer structure with a width of ca. 40 nm. It was likely that GG-236MC (2) molecules were oriented perpendicularly to the long axis of the ribbonlike nanostructure. In addition, wide-angle X-ray scattering measurements revealed that GG-236MC (2) in its hydrogel formed the same crystalline regions as 2,3,6-tri-O-methylcellulose. The influence of the DP of diblock MC with a DS of around 2.7 on the gelation behavior will be discussed.

Synthesis and characterization of a novel PNIPAAm-based copolymer with hydrolysis-dependent thermosensitivity

The aim of this work was the synthesis and characterization of a novel poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-based copolymer, with hydrolysis-dependent thermosensitivity, for bioengineering applications. For this purpose, N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) and 2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate-6-hydroxyhexanoate (HEMAHex) monomers were chosen. The poly(NIPAAm-co-HEMAHex) copolymer was synthesized by radical polymerization. The physicochemical, mechanical, functional and biological properties of the copolymer were investigated. The physicochemical characterization confirmed that the copolymerization was successfully carried out. In addition, the newly synthesized poly(NIPAAm-co-HEMAHex) copolymer showed temperature sensitivity, with a phase separation temperature under body temperature (at 23 °C). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry results after hydrolysis tests indicated that the incorporation of the HEMAHex ester groups provides the cleavage of the lateral chain, which leads to an increase in the hydrophilicity of the copolymer and, consequently, to an increase in the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) with time. Since the LCST increases above body temperature (up to 40.4 °C), the copolymer becomes soluble again and diffuses away. It was also demonstrated that the hydrolysis occurred on the peripheral ester bond of the lateral chain, with the release of 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid, whose bioresorbibility has been reported in the literature. Therefore, the properties of this copolymer are very interesting and make it particularly attractive for biomedical applications.

Alkali cold gelation of whey proteins. Part II: Protein concentration

The effect of the whey protein isolate (WPI) concentration on the sol-gel-sol transition in alkali cold gelation was investigated at pH 11.6-13 using oscillatory rheometry. The elastic modulus increases quickly with time to reach a local maximum (G'max), followed by a degelation step where the modulus decreases to a minimum value (G'min). Depending on the pH, a second gelation step will occur. At the end of the first gelation step around G'max, the system fulfilled the Winter-Chambon criterion of gelation. The analysis of the maximum moduli with the protein concentration shows that (i) there is a percolation concentration above which an elastic response is observed (approximately 6.8 wt %); (ii) there are two concentration regimes for G''max and G''max above this concentration, where we have considered power-law and percolation equations; (iii) there is a crossover concentration between the two regimes (at approximately 8 wt %) for both G'max and G''max when both moduli are equal, and this value is constant under all conditions tested (G'max=G''max approximately 4 Pa). Therefore, alkali cold gelation is better represented using two concentrations regimes than one, as observed for other biopolymers.

A thermoreversible double gel: characterization of a methylcellulose and kappa-carrageenan mixed system in water by SAXS, DSC and rheology

Sol-gel and gel-sol thermal transition of methylcellulose/water, kappa-carrageenan/water and methylcellulose/kappa-carrageenan/water mixtures was investigated utilizing small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and oscillatory rheological experiments in temperature regime from 20 to 80 degrees C. Methylcellulose (E461) and kappa-carrageenan (E407) are well-known additives used for gelation in various nutrition and other products. The formulation and characterization of a mixed thermoreversible methylcellulose/kappa-carrageenan/water gel with very interesting double thermal transition gel-sol-gel upon heating was possible. This specific thermal behavior provides a liquid state of the system between the low-temperature and high-temperature gel-state and at the same time allows for the easy temperature tuning of the system's state. As such this system is suggested to be further tested as potential carrier for various functional colloidal systems.