Frontal polymerization preparation of poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid)/activated carbon composite hydrogels for dye removal

• Published in: Journal of applied polymer science Vol. 129; no. 6; pp. 3737 - 3745
• Main Authors: Li, Shengfang, Huang, Hongping, Tao, Min, Liu, Xianli, Cheng, Tao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 15-09-2013; Wiley; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Activated carbon; Adsorption; Applied sciences; composite hydrogel; Composites; dye; Dyes; Exact sciences and technology; Forms of application and semi-finished materials; frontal polymerization; Hydrogels; Materials science; Particulate composites; Polymer industry, paints, wood; Polymerization; Polymers; Scanning electron microscopy; Swelling; Technology of polymers; Acrylic acid copolymer; adsorption; Swelling; Liquid solid adsorption; Adsorption capacity; Triarylmethane dye; Acrylamide derivative copolymer; Experimental study; frontal polymerization; Composite material; Colloidal gel; dye; composite hydrogel; Activated carbon; Preparation; Acrylamide copolymer; Concentration effect; Hydrogel; Spherical particle; Adsorbent; Rheological properties
• ISSN: 0021-8995; 1097-4628
• DOI: 10.1002/app.39139

A series of poly(acrylic acid‐co‐acrylamide) (PAA)/activated carbon (AC) composite hydrogels were rapidly prepared via frontal polymerization (FP). It was found that an increase in the concentration of AC caused an increase in the front velocity (Vf) and the highest front temperature (Tmax). It may be attributed to that AC particles could increase the liquid viscosity of reaction mixture and remain the reaction heat during FP. The Fourier transform infrared and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed that AC particles had entered the hydrogel network, and many spherical AC particles with an average diameter of 0.5–1 μm had been dispersed homogeneously in the PAA hydrogel matrix. The swelling behavior showed that the equilibrium swelling values of hydrogels increased when the concentration of AC particles increased. Adsorption studies showed that incorporation of AC particles into PAA hydrogel matrix could increase the sites of interaction between the hydrogels and crystal violet molecules and result in an increase of adsorption capacities of hydrogels toward dyes. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013