Production of Polymer Hydrogel Composites and Their Applications

Abstract Hydrogels are three-dimensional cross-linked stable network insoluble in water, which gives them a remarkable capacity to absorb both water and biological fluids. Hydrogel has been synthesized from natural or synthetic polymers and/or monomers, which have made tremendous advancements in many different applications. Composite hydrogel is a type of hydrogel prepared by grafting hydrophilic groups, such as hydroxyl (–OH), carboxylic acid (–COOH), imide (–CONH), sulfonic acid (–SO 3 H), amine (–NH 2 ), and amide (–CONH 2 ), into the polymer chain’s backbone and adding some additives such as kaolin, zeolite, or even different types of nanoparticles. Whereas the polymeric composite hydrogels exhibit stimuli…