Superabsorbent gel

The superabsorbent gels are successfidly applied in civil engineering, for example, for coating the conaete blocks used in the constmction of tunnels. As soon as water comes in contact with the block, the superabsorbent gel swells to tightly fill the gaps between blocks and prevent water from penetration into the tunnel. This method was widely employed in the constmction of tunnels for railroads and highways in Japan, as well as for the Channel tunnel. " ... 

The superabsorbent gels enter into the composition of polymeric ribbons used for protecting underground cables in optical communication Unes. ... 

Also, these gds are employed for the production of fluid-retaining materials in food packaging. Such materials consist of two paper sheets separated by a thin layer of a superabsorbent gel powder. This laminated material is used, for example, for packing fresh meat and poultry products. The gel absorbs excess liquid at the same time, it prevents the stored product from overdrying. ... 

Superabsorbent gel granules swollen in water and frozen are used as artificial snow. The frozen granules retain their properties at a temperature of up to -h15 °C (in contrast to the finely cmshed natural ice that can serve only up to +5... 

Specialists consider there to be a strong possibility of using the superabsorbent gels for strengthening soils, offering protection against slides and mudflows. It was also suggested that wallpapers based on a nonwoven material filled with super-absorbent gel powder can maintain a preset level of humidity in the room. When the humidity increases, the gel will absorb water vapor on the contrary, when the humidity becomes too low, some water will evaporate from the swollen gel. 

Thus, polyelectrolyte gels are highly valuable superabsorbent materials that can be and are employed in various fields. The area of their application will significantly expand when robust composites of the superabsorbent gels with nonwoven materials, mbbets, and so on, will be created. " ... 

Chitosan Water-Soluble System An Approach to Prepare Superabsorbent Gel... 

Previously, we clarified the complexation of chitosan with hydroxybenzo triazole, resulting in a water soluble system of chitosan (27-25). The system is attractive since it provides the reaction, and especially the conjugation, in aqueous media. Based on this approach, the present work, thus, (i) demonstrates a simple but effective crosslink reaction by using poly(ethylene glycol) as the crosslinker to obtain a superabsorbent gel in aqueous, and (ii) proposes... 

One application for superabsorbent gel is the space filling scaffold for tissue engineering. Here, the hydroxyapatite impregnation was further studied. Previously, Tachaboonyakiat et al. reported the formation of hydroxyapatite (HAp) by alternate soaking of the chitosan gel with calcium chloride and sodium hydrogen phosphate (24). The gel was soaked in a calcium chloride solution in the first step to replace the water molecules followed by soaking in a sodium... 

The superabsorbent nature of a hydrogel is related to the hydrophilicity of the chains comprising the polymer network. For example, superabsorbent gels are often made of crosslinked polyelectrolytes. Polyelectrolytes expand significantly in solution as shown by their intrinsic viscosity and excluded-volume properties. The hydrophilic nature of the individual chains gives a gel with large swelling capacity in water. 

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