Acrylic plastics hydrophilic polymers

The ophthalmic applications for plastics lenses include contact lenses which are now made of acrylic plastics. Another material for this application is a special hydrophillic acrylic polymer used in soft contact lenses. These lenses are much more comfortable than rigid contact lenses. 

The key consideration in the analysis of any sustained release dosage form as previously discussed (see Sections II.A, II.B, II.C.l, and II.C.2rg) is to determine what solvent or solvent system will be most appropriate to assure the dissolution of the drug and its excipients to make it amenable to HPLC analysis. Aqueous solubility of weak acids and bases is governed by the pfCa of the compound and the pFI of the medium. In an acidic or low pFI medium, weak acids will be unionized and will be more soluble in organic solvents. The reverse is the case for basic compounds as previously discussed in Section II.B. Because the formulation of sustained release dosage forms tend to rely on the use of insoluble plastics (i.e., methyl acrylate-methyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride, and polyethylene), hydrophilic polymers (i.e., methylcellulose, hydroxypropyl-methylcellulose, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, and carbopol 934), and fatty compounds (i.e., waxes such carnauba wax and glyceryl tristearate), similar hydro-organic solvents and sample preparation steps that have been discussed for tablets and capsules can also used for their analysis by HPLC (see Sections II.A, II.B, II.C.l, and II.C.2). 

For some applications, such as for repulpable type PSAs, it may be advantageous to incorporate high levels of acrylic acid because this makes the polymer more hydrophilic. At the same time, high levels of acid also improve the water-dispersibility of the adhesive, especially at higher pH where the acid groups are converted to the more water-soluble neutralized salt form. Since the high level of acid increases the of the resulting polymer, a non-tacky material results. To make the adhesive pressure sensitive, the polymer can be softened with water-dispersible or soluble plasticizers, such as polyethers [68]. 

Polymers based on acrylic acid are highly hydrophilic and are utilized in different applications that include superadsorbent materials, flocculants and dispersants. Polyacrylates and their copolymers range from soft and flexible materials to hard plastics, applied in the production of coatings, paints, binders and adhesives. Their applications include the manufacture of cars e.g., coatings, upholsteries and adhesives) and the textile e.g., binders for fiberfill and nonwoven fabrics), paper and leather industries. Methyl acrylate is mainly utilized for copolymerization with acrylonitrile to improve the dyeability of fibres. 

Parallel approaches have been described for the preparation of polyacrylate-protease conjugates [396-400]. Acryloylation of subtilisin and a-chymotrypsin, followed by mixed polymerization with methyl methacrylate, vinyl acetate, styrene, or ethylvinyl ether, provides insoluble, doped polymethyl methacrylate, polyvinyl acetate, polystyrene, and polyethyl vinyl ether polymers [396]. These biocatalytic plastics perform especially well in hydrophilic and hydrophobic solvents, and have been used for peptide synthesis and the regioselective acylation of sugars and nucleosides. Similarly, modification of subtilisin and thermolysin with PEG monomethacrylate, then copolymerization with methyl methacrylate and trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate furnishes protease-polymethyl methacrylate plastics, which show good activities and stabilities in aqueous, mixed, and low-water and anhydrous organic media [397-400]. The protein-acrylate composites are unique in that they enable catalytic densities as high as 50% w/w. 

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