What are Nanocomposite Hydrogels?

Sodium alginate (SA) is a natural hydrophilic biopolymer, typically obtained from marine brown macroalgae, and suitable for making hydrogels for biomedical applications due to its biocompatibility, chelating ability, water solubility, and low-cost. The material properties of the alginate hydrogels can be engineered by different gelation methods and can be combined with nanoparticles or copolymers to form fibers, films, or a variety of shapes. The gels can be used in tissue repair and as a bioprinting material for damaged cartilage, herniated discs, synovial membranes, and implants. This study focuses on investigating the differences in the rheological properties of the hydrogels (storage and loss moduli, linear viscoelastic range, and flow point) as a result of the different crosslinking concentrations, the addition of nanoparticles, and metallic ions.

Rice University,  National Science Foundation (NSF) award #EEC-1406885

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

• Francisco Padron, Rice University (2022), "Nanocomposite Hydrogels," https://nanohub.org/resources/36309.

  BibTex | EndNote

1. algae
2. biomedical
3. bioprinting
4. hydrogel
5. nano
6. nanocomposite hydrogel
7. nanocomposites
8. nanomedicine
9. nanoparticles
10. tissue repair