Document Type
Article
Abstract
Biopolymers such as lignin are gaining renewed appeal due to the need for sustainable materials. Herein, we used chelator-mediated Fenton (CMF) chemistry to oxidize Kraft lignin to develop sustainable super absorbent materials. The CMF chemistry adds oxygen, opens aromatic rings and increases COOH content, producing hydrophilic lignin without depolymerization. UV absorption, molecular weight, elemental analysis, and titration were used to study the chemical compositions of CMF-processed lignin. Then the chemically modified hydrophilic lignin was used to produce lignin-based hydrogels utilizing an aqueous polymerization and cross-linking reaction that enabled tunable properties. The resulting lignin hydrogels absorbed water up to 96% and swelled up to 2400%, as well as being re-swellable in water. These lignin-based hydrogels may be applicable in water-absorbing products in consumer goods and agriculture.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Publication Info
Published in Giant, Volume 10, 2022, pages 100106-.
Rights
© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
APA Citation
Hwang, J., Martinez, D. V., Martinez, E. J., Metavarayuth, G., Goodlett, D., Wang, Q., Ganewatta, M., Kent, M. S., & Tang, C. (2022). Highly swellable hydrogels prepared from extensively oxidized lignin. Giant, 10, 100106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giant.2022.100106