A Study on the Effect of Butyl Methacrylate Content on Swelling and Controlled-Release Behavior of Poly (Acrylamide-co-Butyl-Methacrylate-co-Acrylic Acid) Environment-Responsive Hydrogels

Poly (acrylamide-co-butyl methacrylate-co-acrylic acid) [poly (AAm-co-BMA-co-AAc)]-based environment-sensitive hydrogels were prepared by varying the butyl methacrylate (BMA) content, in the range of 20 to 66% (wt. of the total monomer) in the hydrogel. The effect of BMA content on the swelling behavior of the hydrogels was studied by keeping the other two monomers' content constant at different pH and temperatures. The synthesized hydrogels were characterized by various techniques, and release kinetics was analyzed. The application and effect of the BMA content of these hydrogels in controlled drug release of acetaminophen and model drugs were investigated.