ABSTRACT

The presence of extremely large pores makes Superporous Hydrogels (SPH) composites are also ideal materials for chromatographic supports. SPH composites are strong enough to be dropped on the floor without breaking. The low density of SPHs and SPH composites allows applications as a high-strength, light-weight structural material as well as a packaging material. In the biomedical area, SPHs and SPH composites can be used to make various biomedical devices, such as artificial pancreas, artificial cornea, and artificial skin, cell growth substrates in tissue engineering, burn dressings, surgical augmentation of the female breast, or hemoperfusion in blood detoxification and in the treatment of uremia. By making superporous smart hydrogels, the response time could be reduced to seconds or minutes. The swelling kinetics of the dried hydrogels thus depend on the absorption of water occurring by a diffusional process and the relaxation of the polymer chains in the rubbery region.