Preparation of poly(vinyl alcohol)/clay hydrogel through freezing and thawing followed by electron beam irradiation for the treatment of wastewater

作者：Ibrahim Sayeda M^*; El Naggar Amal A

来源：Journal of Thermoplastic Composite Materials, 2013, 26(10): 1332-1348.

DOI：10.1177/0892705712439567

• Hydrogel
• PVA
• clay
• electron beam
• wastewater

In this work, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/clay hydrogel based on various ratios of clay (20%, 50%, and 60%) were prepared using freezing and thawing techniques followed by electron beam (EB) irradiation at different irradiation doses (20, 25, and 30kGy). The physicochemical property of such hydrogel in terms of gel fraction (%) and water uptake (%) was investigated. The structure and property of the hydrogel were investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Thermal property was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. The results indicated that the gel fraction (%) increases on increasing the clay content in the hydrogel at all irradiation doses. The results obtained by XRD and SEM show an intercalation and exfoliation between PVA and clay. The occurrence of one T-g and T-m of the hydrogel indicates the presence of complete miscibility between PVA and clay. Also, the prepared hydrogel exhibit high thermal stability by increasing clay content in the hydrogel. It was found that the prepared PVA/clay hydrogel has a high water uptake, making it acceptable for the use in treatment of wastewater from heavy and toxic metal ions and dye wastes.

• 出版日期2013-11