Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol.85, No.5, 957-964, 2002
Swollen behavior of crosslinked network hydrogels based on poly(vinyl alcohol) and polydimethylsiloxane
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) was dissolved in the water to make a 10 wt % aqueous solution, and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) was mixed with 1 wt % 2,2dimethyl-2-phenylacetophenone (DMPAP) and 0.5 mol % methylenebisacrylamide (MBAAm) in isopropyl alcohol. This mixture was added to a PVA aqueous solution and heated at 90degreesC for 7 h. Various crosslinked networks were prepared at different molar ratios of PVA/PDMS (1: 1, 1:3, and 3: 1). The characterization of PVA/PDMS crosslinked networks was determined by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), a universal testing machine (UTM), and the equilibrium water content (EWC). The DSC melting endotherms showed, at 219.49degreesC, a sharp endothermic peak of PVA, and PVA/PDMS crosslinked networks had melting peaks close to this point. The value of EWC increased with the content of PVA in the crosslinked networks, simultaneously depending on the temperature.