title: Electrical conductivity of pH-responsive hydrogels.
abstract: The electrical conductivity of pH-responsive hydrogels based on cross-linked poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-co-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) copolymers has been studied as a function of pH over the range 5-10, for copolymers containing up to 20 mol% of the amine-containing comonomer. The conductivities of membranes equilibrated in buffered potassium chloride solutions were determined by measuring the electrical resistance of a membrane mounted between the chambers of a modified side-by-side diffusion cell. The conductivity, expressed as a fraction of the conductivity of the buffer in which the gels were equilibrated, ranged from 1% for the gels in the collapsed state to 70% for the most highly swollen gels. The observed results are qualitatively consistent with a proposed model in which the ion concentrations in the fluid phase of the gel are described by Donnan partitioning, and the ion mobilities by the free-volume theory of Yasuda. The results suggest that conductivity measurements may provide an alternative to diffusive transport studies for characterizing moderately swollen hydrogel membranes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.
authors.forename: N F
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Sheppard
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Lesho
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Tucker
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Salehi-Had
mesh_terms: D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents / Q000737:chemistry; D004058:Diffusion; D004553:Electric Conductivity; D005782:Gels; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007202:Indicators and Reagents / Q000737:chemistry; D008433:Mathematics; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D008689:Methacrylates / Q000737:chemistry*; D011108:Polymers; D011189:Potassium Chloride / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D005782:Gels; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D008689:Methacrylates; D011108:Polymers; D011189:Potassium Chloride; C005044:hydroxyethyl methacrylate; C049840:2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate