Synthesis of New Hydrogels Involving Acrylic Acid and Acrylamide Grafted Agar-Agar and Their Application in the Removal of Cationic Dyes from Wastewater.

Polyacrylic Acid grafted Agar-agar (AAc-graf-Agar), and polyacrylamide grafted Agar-Agar (AAm-graf-Agar) have been synthesised by free radical polymerisation route initiated by ammonium peroxodisulphate (APS), the grafted polymers were characterised by FTIR, TGA and SEM methods. The swelling properties were studied in deionised water and saline solution at room temperature. The prepared hydrogels were examined by removing cationic methylene blue (MB) dye from the aqueous solution, in which the adsorption kinetics and isotherms models were also investigated. It was found that the pseudo-second-order and Langmuir equations are the most suitable for the different sorption processes. The maximum dye adsorption capacity was 1035.96 mg∙g-1 for AAc-graf-Agar in pH medium 12 and 1015.7 mg∙g-1 for AAm-graf-Agar in neutral pH medium. This indicates that the AAc-graf-Agar hydrogel could be an excellent adsorbent for removing MB from aqueous solutions.

Polyacrylamide Grafted Xanthan: Microwave-Assisted Synthesis and Rheological Behavior for Polymer Flooding.

Application of polymer-flooding systems in secondary and tertiary oil recovery represents a real challenge for oil industry. In this work, our main objective is to explore possibilities of making use of xanthan-g-polyacrylamide for polymer flooding in a particular Devonian oilfield of medium salinity. The graft polymer was synthesized by using microwave-assisted graft copolymerization reaction of acrylamide on xanthan. The synthesized copolymer with optimized grafting parameters has been characterized by Infrared Spectroscopy and Thermal Analysis (DSC). Rheological analysis by steady shear and oscillatory flow experiments have been subsequently performed for xanthan and grafted xanthan under reservoir conditions. In steady shear, as expected the grafted polymer solutions flow as shear-thinning materials and apparent viscosity showed good fits with Cross's model. The viscosity losses due to salinity or temperature are more controlled for the grafted xanthan compared to pristine xanthan. When the grafted polymer concentration is increased to 2000 ppm the losses were halved. In oscillatory shear, the copolymer solutions followed a global behavior of semi-dilute entangled systems; furthermore, all dynamic properties were influenced by the brine salinity. Compared to xanthan, the elastic properties of xanthan-g-polyacrylamide solutions have been significantly improved in saline media and the losses in elasticity of grafted polymer solutions are lower.

In vitro biomineralization and bulk characterization of chitosan/hydroxyapatite composite microparticles prepared by emulsification cross-linking method: orthopedic use.

Chitosan/hydroxyapatite composite microparticles were prepared by a solid-in-water-in-oil emulsification cross-linking method. The characteristics and activity in presence of simulated body fluid for 14 and 21 days were investigated. The size distribution, surface morphology, and microstructure of these biomaterials were evaluated. The scanning electron microscopy revealed an aggregate of microparticles with a particle size, ranged from 4 to 10 µm. The deposited calcium phosphate was studied using X-ray diffraction analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma/atomic emission spectroscopy analysis of phosphorus. These results show that the mineral, formed on microparticles, was a mixture of carbonated hydroxyapatite and calcite. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that calcium phosphate crystals growth was in form of rods organized as concentric triangular packets interconnected to each other by junctions. Interaction between chitosan and growing carbonated hydroxyapatite and calcite crystals are responsible for a composite growth into triangular and spherical shapes. The results demonstrated that these microparticles were potential materials for bone repair.

Biotreatment on cellulose fluff pulp: quaternary ammonium salts finish and grafting with beta-cyclodextrin.

For its potential performances to be expanded, cellulose needs to be processed in different ways. Therefore, an object of the present work was to provide a chemical modification of cellulose through: a specific finish with two quaternary ammonium salts (namely Aliquat 336 and Aliquat 1529, respectively). Chemical grafting of beta-cyclodextrin derivative (beta-CD) onto fibers followed by the inclusion of benzoic acid in the grafted CD cavities as a probe chemical. Physicochemical properties and performances of the untreated and treated fibers have been determined with infrared spectra, microscopy, swelling measurements, antimicrobial finishing tests, and dye adsorption. Our results show that cellulose fibers can be efficiently modified with no significant changes in its structural and surface properties; the treated fibers show an attractive behavior in swelling, dye adsorption and antibacterial activity.