酶凝干酪素物理凝胶化过程的有限元模拟

以酶凝干酪素的凝胶化过程为对象,利用有限元方法数值分析了在凝胶化过程中温度场的空间分布和时间演变规律.在此基础上,基于一阶的凝胶化动力学方程,数值模拟了凝胶体系的复剪切模量场,进而分析了材料配方、体系尺寸与冷却方案对复剪切模量场的影响规律.模拟结果表明,由于热阻的差异,体系表面的冷却速率大于内部,表面首先发生凝胶化;而由于预凝胶化阶段的平均冷却速率决定了无穷复剪切模量的值,最终体系内部的复剪切模量超过表面的.     

Micron range morphology of physical chitosan hydrogels

Physical chitosan hydrogels are potential biomaterials for several biomedical applications, such as wound healing, tissue repair, and drug delivery. Controlling the microstructural organization of chitosan gels is one of the keys for monitoring the physical, mechanical, and biological properties. As a result, the main objective of the present work was to explore the microstructural organization of chitosan hydrogels in relation with the processing conditions of gelation. For this purpose, different gelation routes were studied, that is, chitosan solution neutralization of an aqueous or hydroalcoholic solution and neutralization of an alco-gel. Overall, the resulting morphology after processing was determined by the medium viscosity during neutralization and the nature and concentration of the base. The effect of these processing parameters on the morphology was evaluated mainly through small angle light scattering (SALS) measurements including in situ measurements during chitosan neutralization. As a result, we reported different bulk microstructures consisting in 200-400 nm aggregates (primary particles) agglomerated into micrometer range clusters or arranged into more organized structures, that is, forming microchannels (4-6 μm). We thus established a qualitative and quantitative relation between supramolecular morphology and gelation conditions of chitosan hydrogels.     

聚丙烯腈溶液的凝胶化研究

聚丙烯腈是用途最广泛的聚合物之一,其溶于适当溶剂中形成的聚丙烯腈溶液是制备聚丙烯腈纤维、渗透膜等高分子材料的原料。聚丙烯腈溶液的物理化学性质对所制备材料的性能有很大的影响。本文对高分子溶液的凝胶化和高分子凝胶的特点做了简要介绍,并介绍了聚丙烯腈及其凝胶的特点。根据高分子浓溶液体系的特点提出用于表征聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化的主要方法。从浓度和温度对聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化行为的影响、熟化和非溶剂对聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化行为的影响、聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化的热可逆性、聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化的分形特征以及聚丙烯腈凝胶的交联机理这几个方面对已有聚丙烯腈溶液的凝胶化研究成果和最新进展进行了综述。最后对聚丙烯腈溶液凝胶化和聚丙烯腈凝胶的研究前景做了展望。     

A NOVEL APPROACH TO SYNTHESIZE CHITOSAN BEADS CROSSLINKED BY EPICHLOROHYDRIN

1. INTRODUCTION Chitosan is the deacetylated chitin which is one of the most abundant natural polymers produced from crab, lobster and shrimp shells or fungal fermentation processes [1]. It is a family of deacetylated β1→4 D-glucosamine polymers. Chitosan has properties including bioactivity, biocompatibility and biodegradability, so it is potentially more useful than cellulose for developing advanced of attention not only as an unutilized biomass resource but also as a novel type of sp…     

A NOVEL APPROACH TO SYNTHESIZE CHITOSAN BEADS CROSSLINKED BY EPICHLOROHYDRIN

The present investigation describes a novel method for preparing spherical chitosan particles based on crosslinking with epichlorohydrin.Certain amount of pre-crosslinking agent was added to form chitosan gels by traditional inverse phase suspension polymerization.Then the gels were crosslinked by epichlorohydrin at basic condition to obtain chitosan beads.The effects of reaction conditions,such as crosslinking time,the amount of crosslinking agent and the NaOH concentration,on the physical properties of the chitosan beads were investigated.The beads were found to have more amino groups in the polymer chains than the beads crosslinked by glutaraldehyde.The capacity for copper ions in as high as 40mg/g,The beads have good mechanical strength and can be reused.     

The Nature of Crosslinking in N‐Vinylformamide Free‐Radical Polymerization

N‐Vinylformamide (NVF) free‐radical polymerization was found to form polymer gels at high conversions both in bulk and in solution. The polymerization was conducted at different temperatures, monomer and initiator concentrations to show the gelation conditions. Gel fractions and gel swelling ratios were also measured after separating the gel from the polymer samples. In order to confirm the crosslinking unit, a series of hydrolysis experiments were conducted on the gel samples. The hydrolysis results showed that the crosslinks in PNVF gels could be destroyed by alkaline hydrolysis. The most appropriate explanation to this fact is that crosslinking takes place via the amide group.     

自由基引发的凝胶化反应的Monte Carlo模拟

基于自由基凝胶化反应的基本原理,在一个具有周期性边界条件的二维网络上,利用动态ＭｏｎｔｅＣａｒｌｏ 方法模拟了聚合物凝胶的自由基凝胶化反应,得到了凝胶的具体结构,研究了总单体浓度（ 单体浓度和交联剂浓度之和） 对凝胶的分形结构和孔径分布的影响．模拟中首次考虑了聚合后单体的运动对凝胶结构的影响．结果表明：考虑聚合后单体的运动,可使所得凝胶网络的分形维数和凝胶化所需的最低浓度均显著小于动力学凝胶化模型和ＤＬＡ 模型的相应值．用移动气泡法得到了凝胶网络的孔径分布,发现凝胶网络中大孔所占百分率明显多于随机纤维网络模型．     

Effect of mixed solvent on solution properties and gelation behavior of poly(vinyl alcohol)

In this work, the static and dynamic light scattering measurements were used to investigate the solution properties and the aging effects on PVA/DMSO/water ternary system in dilute region at 25 °C. It was found that the phase separation and aggregate behavior occurs rapidly and obviously when DMSO mole fraction (X₁) in the solvent mixture is between 0.2 and 0.33, especially at 0.25. In this solvent composition range, a broad peak which indicates phase separation and chain aggregation can be observed from static light scattering measurement. However, when DMSO mole fraction is increased to 0.37, no such peak is present. For this ternary system, the gelation mechanism and the relationship between the phase separation behavior and the gelation of the formed physical gels were also investigated through the gelation kinetic analyses in the dilute and semi-dilute region. It is concluded that the cononsolvency effect in the dilute solution is not the sole origin that affects the phase separation, aggregation, and gelation behavior for the ternary system in a higher polymer concentration range. The hydrodynamic factors such as the higher viscosity and slower polymer chain diffusion that are resulted from higher polymer concentration should be also considered.     

Synthesis and characteristics of cryogels of chitosan crosslinked by glutaric aldehyde

The mechanism of cryotropic gelation in moderately frozen solutions of chitosan crosslinked by glutaric aldehyde is studied. Chitosan cryogels with large pores are synthesized at a low content of crosslinking agent in the reaction mixture or under conditions that do not lead to gelation at temperatures above 0°C. The dependences of the yield of gel fractions, the degree of swelling of the polymer phase of cryogels, and the hydrodynamic characteristics of cryogels on the temperature of synthesis are shown to be extremal. This result may be explained by the competition between the cryoconcentration of reagents in the nonfrozen liquid microphase, which assists the development of a crosslinked polymer network, and such factors as an increase in the viscosity of the reaction mixture and a reduced reagent mobility, which prevent gelation. The morphology of chitosan cryogels is studied, and the character of the macroporous structure of the samples prepared at different temperatures is shown to exert a stronger effect on the hydrodynamic characteristics of a cryogel than the degree of swelling of crosslinked polymers in the walls of its macropores.     

Thermoreversible gelation of blend of poly(vinylidene fluoride) and poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) in γ-butyrolactone solution

Thermoreversible gelation behavior of blend of poly(vinylidene fluoride) and poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) in γ-butyrolactone solution was studied. Sol-gel transition temperature increased with the increase of polymer concentration, but was independent of the blend ratio of two polymers. An equation for gelation rate was derived, assuming that the gelation is a first-order reaction and that the gelation rate obeys an Arrhenius type. According to the equation, the growth index of gelation and supercooling temperature had a dominant effect on gelation rate. The growth index of gelation, which was calculated from the dependence of activation energy on the supercooling temperature in the isothermal gelation, varied with the blend ratio of two polymers. Growth index of gelation larger than 2 was obtained for the blend gels studied in this experiment. It may suggest that the multidimensional growth of gels occurs in such polymer blend solutions. X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry measurements showed existence of separate crystals due to each component of polymer in the blend gels. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Gamma Radiation‐Induced Crosslinked PVA/Chitosan Blends for Wound Dressing

Crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and chitosan polymer blends have been prepared by using gamma irradiation. Chitosan was used in the blends to prevent microbiological growth, such as bacteria and fungi on the polymer. The physical properties of the blend, such as gelation, water absorption, and mechanical properties were examined to evaluate the possibility of its application for wound dressing. A mixture of PVA/chitosan, with different ratios, were exposed to gamma irradiation doses of 20, 30, 50 KGy, to evaluate the effect of irradiation dose on the physical properties of the blend. It was found that the gel fraction increases with increasing irradiation dose and PVA concentration in the blend. Swelling percent increased as the composition of chitosan increased in the blend. The PVA/chitosan blend has a water content in the range between 40% and 60% and water absorption between 60% and 100%. The water vapor transmission rate value (WVRT) of the PVA/chitosan blend varies between 50% and 70%. The examination of the microbe penetration shows that the prepared blend can be considered as a good barrier against microbes. Thus, the PVA/chitosan blend showed satisfactory properties for use as a wound dressing.     

Salt-induced thickening and gelation of a poly(carboxylate) having three kinds of hydroxyl groups

A salt-induced physical gelation was found for the aqueous solution of poly(carboxylate)s having three kinds of hydroxyl groups, i.e., primary, tertiary and one on a hemiacetal ring. The gelation point (critical salt concentration) was positively correlated with the content of the hemiacetal component, while the previously confirmed hydrogen bond between the hemiacetal OH and –COO⁻ group does not seem to essentially contribute to the physical gelation. Above a critical polymer concentration, the solution viscosity was first decreased and then increased with increasing NaCl concentration, leading to gelation. However, below the critical polymer concentration, the viscosity decreased. These different behaviors of the solution viscosity depending on the polymer concentration were ascribed to a preferential promotion of intermolecular or intramolecular hydrogen bonds among the hemiacetal OH groups above and below the critical polymer concentration, respectively.     

Polymer-bridged gels of nanoparticles in solutions of adsorbing polymers

We use a combination of polymer mean field theory and Monte Carlo simulations to study the polymer-bridged gelation, clustering behavior, and elastic moduli of polymer-nanoparticle mixtures. Polymer self-consistent field theory is first numerically implemented to quantify both the polymer induced interparticle interaction potentials and the conformational statistics of polymer chains between two spherical particles. Subsequently, the formation and structure of polymer-bridged nanoparticle gels are examined using Monte Carlo simulations. Our results indicate a universality in the fractal structure for the polymer-bridged networks over a wide range of parametric conditions. Explicitly, near the gelation transition, the fractal dimension d(f) ranges between 2.2 and 2.5, and above the gelation thresholds, the elastic moduli are found to follow a universal power law G(') proportional, variant(eta-eta(c))(nu(eta) ) with a critical exponent nu(eta) approximately 1.82. The latter suggests strong similarities between polymer-bridging induced percolation and classical elastic resistor network percolation. Our results show a very good agreement with the experimental results for polymer-particle mixtures and suggest a possible framework for experimentally distinguishing the origins of gelation phenomena observed in polymer-particle mixtures.     

Physical organogels composed of amphiphilic block copolymers and 1,3:2,4-dibenzylidene-D-sorbitol

The 1,3:2,4-dibenzylidene-D-sorbitol (DBS) molecule is capable of self-organizing into nanoscale fibrils through intermolecular forces such as hydrogen bonding and pi interactions. At sufficiently high concentrations (typically less than approximately 2 wt%), the nanofibrils can form a network that promotes physical gelation of the matrix medium. Previous studies have investigated the mechanism of DBS-induced gelation and the features of DBS-containing gels in poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and poly(propylene glycol) (PPG). In this work, we examine the effect of adding DBS to a series of amphiphilic PPG-b-PEG-b-PPG triblock copolymers differing in composition and molecular weight. Dynamic rheological measurements reveal that the resultant gels are thermoreversible (i.e., they exhibit comparable mechanical properties before dissolution and after reformation under quiescent conditions), exhibiting a maximum in the elastic modulus (G') at temperatures near the gel dissolution (T(d)) and formation (T(f)) temperatures. Both T(d) and T(f) tend to increase with increasing DBS concentration and PPG content, and their difference decreases with increasing PPG fraction in the copolymer. The magnitude of G' is sensitive to copolymer composition and polymer identity at low DBS concentrations, but becomes polymer-independent as the DBS network saturates at concentrations in excess of approximately 1 wt%.     

Rheological Properties of Polymer-Containing Aqueous Aerosil Dispersions

The rheological properties of two- and three-component systems containing a solid phase (hydrated aerosil), water, and a water-soluble polymer were studied under static and dynamic conditions. Gels prepared by the cross-linking of these systems with CrCl₃were also investigated. Minimal concentrations of the polymer and the solid phase necessary for a gel-like system formation were determined. The kinetics of the gelation was studied. The formation process of the chemically cross-linked gels was found to be determined not only by the ratio between the concentrations of the solid phase, the cross-linking agent, and the polymer, but also by the degree of polymerization of the latter.     

Synthesis and self-assembling properties of diacetylene-containing glycolipids

Diacetylene-containing glycolipids are interesting molecules that have many potential applications. The polydiacetylenes formed by the cross-linking of the diacetylene lipids are new stimuli-responsive materials. In particular, diacetylene lipids that can form gels in aqueous solution are of great interest in designing functional biocompatible materials. We have synthesized a series of diacetylene-containing sugar lipids with different chain lengths, substituents, and positions of diyne and studied their self-assembling properties in several solvents including hexane, ethanol, and ethanol/water mixture. Among the 24 diacetylene-containing glycolipids synthesized, many of them exhibited excellent gelation properties in ethanol or ethanol/water mixture. Typically very long chain diacetylene lipids formed gels in ethanol and hexane. Shorter chain diacetylene lipids and compounds with one free hydroxyl group can form gels in aqueous solution. The position of the diyne and chain length affect the self-assembling properties significantly. The systematic study of the gelation properties for diacetylene lipids with different lipid chains can help us to understand the structure requirement for the desired physical properties. Optical microscopy studies showed that the molecules form interesting architectures such as tubules, rods, sheets, and belts. The resulting organogels can also be cross-linked and give different colored polymerized gels depending on their structures.     

Preparation of Mesoporous Titania by Templating with Polymer and Surfactant and its Characterization

Mesoporous titania was obtained by gelation from Ti-alkoxide in alcoholic solutions with addition of polymer and/or surfactant. The structure and surface morphology of the gels were characterized by N₂-adsorption measurements, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The specific surface area and pore volume of the gels can be increased with addition of hydrophilic polymer such as polyethyleneglycol. Surfactants like cetyltrimetylammoniumchloride are effective to control the pore size and to increase the pore volume and surface area. The surface morphology of the gels can be modified by the mixing method with polymer and/or surfactant. The effects of the templating on pore size distribution, pore shape, surface area and crystallization behaviors have been discussed.     

凝胶法制备条件对载体硅胶孔结构的影响

以水玻璃、硫酸为原料采用凝胶法制备了烯烃环氧化催化剂载体硅胶,为探讨制备条件对硅胶孔结构的影响,采用物理吸附仪对不同条件下制备的硅胶进行了表征,结果表明:溶胶pH值、老化温度和老化时间、氨水pH值对硅胶孔结构影响显著,当溶胶pH值为1.5,在80℃下用pH 10.5的氨水浸泡老化凝胶2 h,所得硅胶的比表面积在300 m2.g-1左右,孔径和孔容分别在9.71 nm和0.92 cm3.g-1以上,以此硅胶为载体制得的非均相催化剂Ti/SiO2对于氯丙烯和环己基过氧化氢的环氧化反应具有明显的催化活性。     

Gelation in solutions of high-molecular-mass polyacrylonitrile under shear deformation

The effect of shear fields on the rate of physical gelation in semidilute solutions of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyacrylonitrile in propylene carbonate and on the structural features of the resulting gels has been studied. At 30–70°C in the uniform shear field, the induction period of gelation decreases from several hours to several seconds with an increase in the shear stress. The patterns of these dependences are rather close at shear stresses above 20 Pa, while significant differences are observed at these temperatures only at low shear stresses (below 15 Pa). Depending on the shear stress, two types of gelation can be distinguished at 70°C. At stresses below 15 Pa, the polymer phase emerging in the course of shear deformation is aligned along shear lines and the sample is macroscopically nonuniform. At higher shear stresses, the structure of the sample is uniform throughout its bulk.     

Supramolecular hydrogel formation based on inclusion complexation between poly(ethylene glycol)-modified chitosan and alpha-cyclodextrin

Supramolecular hydrogels have been prepared on the basis of polymer inclusion complex (PIC) formation between poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-modified chitosans and alpha-cyclodextrin (alpha-CD). A series of PEG-modified chitosans were synthesized by coupling reactions between chitosan and monocarboxylated PEG using water-soluble carbodiimide (EDC) as coupling agent. With simple mixing, the resultant supramolecular assembly of the polymers and alpha-CD molecules led to hydrogel formation in aqueous media. The supramolecular structure of the PIC hydrogels was confirmed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction, and (13)C cross-polarized/magic-angle spinning (CP/MAS) NMR characterization. The PEG side-chains on the chitosan backbones were found to form inclusion complexes (ICs) with alpha-CD molecules, resulting in the formation of channel-type crystalline micro-domains. The IC domains play an important role in holding together hydrated chitosan chains as physical junctions. The gelation property was affected by several factors including the PEG content in the polymers, the solution concentration, the mixing ratio of host and guest molecules, temperature, pH, etc. All the hydrogels in acidic conditions exhibited thermo-reversible gel-sol transitions under appropriate conditions of mixing ratio and PEG content in the mixing process. The transitions were induced by supramolecular association and dissociation. These supramolecular hydrogels were found to have phase-separated structures that consist of hydrophobic crystalline PIC domains, which were formed by the host-guest interaction between alpha-CD and PEG, and hydrated chitosan matrices below the pK(a).The formation of inclusion complexes between alpha-cyclodextrin and PEG-modified chitosan leads to the formation of hydrogels that can undergo thermo-reversible supramolecular dissociation.