Macroscopic hydrogels and microgels

Gels are crosslinked networks of polymers that are insoluble in their dispersion medium. In case of hydrogels, the dispersion medium is water and thus hydrogels are defined as crosslinked polymeric porous networks that can absorb huge quantities of water into their interstitial pores (Hoffman, 2002). For fabrication of temperature-sensitive hydrogels, polymer materials have been processed into both three-dimensional macroscopic materials called as bulk hydrogels and microscopic materials called microgels and used for relevant applications. 

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