title: Self-assembly of polypyrrole/chitosan composite hydrogels.
abstract: Hydrogels based on the polypyrrole (PPy)/chitosan (CS) composite are self-assembled and characterized for their electrical and swelling properties. The static polymerization of pyrrole monomer in aqueous solution containing CS is accompanied with the formation of PPy/CS composite hydrogel. The feed order in the reaction process plays a key role in the formation of the hydrogels. The participation of one-dimensional PPy blocks in the formation of the hydrogel network avoids a possible migration of PPy from the hydrogel. The effect of pH and ionic strength on the physical properties of PPy/CS composite hydrogels are investigated in detail. The results indicate that the pH-sensitive PPy/CS composite hydrogels show good water absorbencies in distilled water and saline solution. This method may open a new opportunity for the fabrication of composite hydrogels associating the biomacromolecules and conducting polymers, and the improvement of the comprehensive performance of the resulting products.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430073, PR China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jiao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Songmin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shang
authors.forename: Marcus Chun-wah
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Yuen
authors.forename: Guoping
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yan
mesh_terms: D000645:Ammonium Sulfate / Q000737:chemistry; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry*; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D009994:Osmolar Concentration; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D011758:Pyrroles / Q000737:chemistry*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels; D011108:Polymers; D011758:Pyrroles; D014867:Water; C067635:polypyrrole; D048271:Chitosan; D000645:Ammonium Sulfate