Effect of surfactants on polyvinyl alcohol-borax hydrogel: Rheology and thermal aspects

Abstract

<span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family: " times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-bidi-font-family:="" mangal;mso-ansi-language:en-gb;mso-fareast-language:en-us;mso-bidi-language:="" hi"="" lang="EN-GB">Addition of the surfactant, sodium dodecyl sulphate well below the critical micelle concentration facilitates cross-linked networks in the polyvinyl alcohol-borax hydrogel, while at a concentration higher than the CMC, surfactant micelles start destabilizing the cross-linking in the gel network. The PVA-borax hydrogel shows an increased elastic behavior, in particular at lower SDS concentration and Maxwellian fluid behaviour at lower concentration of both SDS and T<span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family: " times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";mso-ansi-language:="" en-gb;mso-fareast-language:en-us;mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB">X<span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:="" "times="" roman";mso-bidi-font-family:mangal;mso-ansi-language:en-gb;="" mso-fareast-language:en-us;mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-GB">-100. Inclusion of SDS in the hydrogel also significantly lowers the gel-sol transition temperature. </span></span></span>