Statistical Optimization of Physically Crosslinked Poly(vinyl alcohol)/Starch Hydrogelsfor Biomedical Applications
Main Article Content
Abstract
Hydrogels are hydrophilic polymer networks with three-dimensional architectures and potential in biomedical applications. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a standard base material but exhibits an inherent trade-off between mechanical strength and swelling capacity, while chemical crosslinkers can compromise biocompatibility. This study overcomes these limitations by statistically optimizing physically crosslinked PVA/starch (ST) hydrogels to achieve a balanced combination of tensile strength (TS), elongation at break (EAB), and swelling index (SI). Hydrogel membranes were prepared without chemical crosslinkers by two freeze–thaw cycles (−80 °C for 18 h; thawing 6 h) while varying PVA concentration and ST/PVA ratio. Quadratic response-surface models from a central composite design agreed well with experimental responses. Within the design space, TS, EAB, and SI ranged from 3.78–8.88 MPa, 228.8–437.7%, and 217–363%, respectively. Multi-response optimization identified 11.4 wt% PVA and 1.5 wt% ST/PVA as the best compromise, delivering TS equal 7.85 MPa, EAB equal 387.2%, and SI equal 273% with small deviations from predicted values. Scanning Electron Microscopy indicated uniform ST dispersion and ductile fracture features. Overall, this work provides a crosslinker-free and scalable formulation roadmap for tuning mechanical robustness and absorbency in PVA/ST hydrogels, supporting flexible dressings for high-mobility anatomical sites.
Keywords
Freeze–thaw, hydrogel, poly(vinyl alcohol), response surface, starch.
Article Details
References
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