High mechanical strength hydrogels preparation using hydrophilic reactive microgels as crosslinking agents

HRM (hydrophilic reactive microgels) hydrogels based on acrylamide and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid were prepared using HRM as a new crosslinking agent. HRM containing double bonds (C=C) were obtained by chemically modifying hydrophilic microgels (HM) of acrylamide with 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid. The resulting HRM hydrogels had high compression strength, elasticity, and elongation under high water content. The excellent mechanical performance is a main result of the unique microstructure of the hydrogels that are crosslinked by HRM instead of the conventional crosslinking agents such as N,N'aEuromethylenebisacrylamide.