Preparation of PVP/MHEC Blended Hydrogels via Gamma Irradiation and Their Calcium ion Uptaking and Releasing Ability

The present work was aimed to prepare hydrogels from polymer blend between poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) and methyl hydroxyethyl cellulose (MHEC) via Co-60 gamma irradiation. The crosslinking structures in the hydrogels were induced by varying the irradiation doses from 10 to 40 kGy. The gel fraction and the swelling ratio of hydrogels were characterized. The results showed that the swelling ratio of hydrogels increases with increasing the irradiation dose while the gel fraction of hydrogels depended on the obtained hydrogels prepared from PVP or MHEC. The hydrogels were determined the calcium ion uptaking and releasing ability in the water. (C) 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.