Radiation-chemical preparation of poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels

• The synthesis and the properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels were studied.
• PVA was modified by glycidyl methacrylate before gamma cross-linking.
• The modification results in decreasing of PVA cross-linking dose by 3 orders lower.
• The gel fraction and water content of the hydrogels were measured.
• A fraction of the “bound” water in hydrogels is independent of gel fraction content.

This work reports the usage of method of radiation-chemical synthesis to prepare cross-linked hydrogels from poly(vinyl alcohol) modified with glycidyl methacrylate. Synthesis kinetics of modified poly(vinyl alcohol) and properties of hydrogels were studied. The gel fraction, swelling, mechanical properties, and water content of the hydrogels were measured. It was found that gel fraction increases with increasing radiation dose, concentration of modified poly(vinyl alcohol), and reaches 60%. It was established by differential scanning calorimetry that a fraction of the “bound” water in hydrogels is 50–70% and independent of gel fraction content. In addition to “bound” and “free” states, water in hydrogels is also present in the intermediate state.