Synthesis and characterisation of a polysulfone-polyvinyl alcohol hydrogelic material
Date
2016Author
Mbambisa, Gcineka
Molapo, Kerileng M.
Sunday, Christopher E.
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Hydrogels are flexible materials that have found a niche in membrane science owing to their ability to
absorb water without dissolving. The synthesis of polyvinyl alcohol-polysulfone hydrogel in the
presence of N-hydroxy succinimide is presented herein. This hydrogel is characterised using FTIR
spectroscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, SEM and electrochemical techniques. The FTIR
spectroscopic analysis shows that the hydrogel retains bonds that are related to both polysulfone and
polyvinyl alcohol moieties. The new hydrogel displays a highly branched morphology with reduced
pore size in comparison with polysulfone. The hydrogel also has a lower charge transfer resistance
(Rct: 12.065 k) in comparison with the polysulfone (Rct: 23.260 k), which implies that the hydrogel
is more conductive than the original polysulphone.