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. 2023 Apr 20;24(8):7558.
doi: 10.3390/ijms24087558.

Composite Hydrogels Based on Poly(Ethylene Glycol) and Cellulose Macromonomers as Fortified Materials for Environmental Cleanup and Clean Water Safeguarding

Dariya Getya  1   2 , Alec Lucas  3 , Ivan Gitsov  1   2   4
Affiliations

Composite Hydrogels Based on Poly(Ethylene Glycol) and Cellulose Macromonomers as Fortified Materials for Environmental Cleanup and Clean Water Safeguarding

Dariya Getya et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Pollution with organic dyes is one of the most typical environmental problems related to industrial wastewater. The removal of these dyes opens up new prospects for environmental remediation, but the design of sustainable and inexpensive systems for water purification is a fundamental challenge. This paper reports the synthesis of novel fortified hydrogels that can bind and remove organic dyes from aqueous solutions. These hydrophilic conetworks consist of chemically modified poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-m) and multifunctional cellulose macromonomers ("cellu-mers"). Williamson etherification with 4-vinylbenzyl chloride (4-VBC) is used to modify PEGs of different molecular masses (1, 5, 6, and 10 kDa) and cellobiose, Sigmacell, or Technocell™ T-90 cellulose (products derived from natural renewable resources) with polymerizable/crosslinkable moieties. The networks are formed with good (75%) to excellent (96%) yields. They show good swelling and have good mechanical properties according to rheological tests. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals that cellulose fibers are visibly embedded into the inner hydrogel structure. The ability to bind and remove organic dyes, such as bromophenol blue (BPB), methylene blue (MB), and crystal violet (CV), from aqueous solutions hints at the potential of the new cellulosic hydrogels for environmental cleanup and clean water safeguarding.

Keywords: PEG; cellulose; hydrogels; modification; water treatment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of the data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Scheme 1
Scheme 1
Crosslinking of styrene-modified PEG with multifunctional reactive “cellu-mer”.
Scheme 2
Scheme 2
PEG chain-end modification with 4-vinylbenzyl chloride.
Figure 1
Figure 1
SEC chromatograms of initial PEGs (dashed line) and modified PEGs (solid line) in tetrahydrofuran (THF). (a) PEG 1 kDa; (b) PEG-m 1 kDa; (c) PEG 5 kDa; (d) PEG-m 5 kDa; (e) PEG 6 kDa; (f) PEG-m 6 kDa; (g) PEG 10 kDa; and (h) PEG-m 10 kDa.
Figure 2
Figure 2
1H NMR spectra of (a) PEG 1k; (b) 4-VBC; and (c) PEG-m 1k. Analyses were performed in CDCl3.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Scanning electron micrographs of synthesized hydrogels. (a) Self-crosslinked PEG-m 1k; (b) PEG-m 1k/1 wt% CB-m; (c) self-crosslinked PEG-m 6k; and (d) PEG-m 6k/1 wt% CB-m.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Scanning electron micrographs of hydrogels synthesized with 1 wt% CELL-m. (a) PEG-m 1k/CELL-m; (b) PEG-m 6k/CELL-m. Visible cellulose fibers are encircled in red.
Figure 5
Figure 5
DSC traces of PEG-m 6 kDa hydrogels and starting material (PEG 6k).
Scheme 3
Scheme 3
Hydrogel networks prepared with 1 and 10 wt% crosslinkers before and after swelling.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Frequency sweep of PEG-m 1k hydrogels, elastic (A) and viscous (B) moduli.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Frequency sweep of PEG-m 6k hydrogels, elastic (A) and viscous (B) moduli.
Figure 8
Figure 8
BPB encapsulation by PEG-m 6k hydrogels. (A) Self-crosslinked PEG-m; (B) 10% CB-m; (C) T90-m; and (D) 10% CELL-m. Absorbance was adjusted for the amount of hydrogel used.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Comparison of organic dye adsorption by PEG-m 6k gels. (A) Self-crosslinked, BPB; (B) 10 w% CELL, BPB; (C) 10 w% CELL, MB; and (D) 10 w% CELL, CV. Absorbance was adjusted for the amount of hydrogel used.
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