PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF MWCNTS/PVA COMPOSITE HYDROGELS WITH HIGH MECHANICAL AND ELECTROCHEMICAL PROPERTY FOR BIOMEDICAL APPLICATION

摘要

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) show unique mechanical, electrical and thermal properties and large surface area as well as the potential for surface functionalization and they have been used in applications of biosensors and considered as potential reinforcement materials in biocomposites for a long time. But one of concerns about toxicity effects of CNT is their risk in the body environment, such as inflammatory responses or the formation of Granuloma. To avoid this, we combine with CNTs Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogel molecules. PVA is a useful water-soluble synthetic hydrogel, which has been widely studied and applied in the form of fiber, film and gel. PVA hydrogel has been advanced as a biomaterial for the applications of medical devices because of its viscoelastic nature, high water content, non-toxic and biocompatibility. Compare to other hydrogel molecules, PVA-H is easier to get crosslinked without the addition of chemical crosslinking agents, which may be devastating when released into the body system. After a freezing-thawing process, PVA molecular chains are cross-linked by entanglement, molecular association, or crystallites.