Biopolymer gel swelling analysed with scaling laws and Flory-Rehner theory

R.G.M. van der Sman*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

74 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The swelling of biopolymer gels is analysed with scaling laws from polymer physics, as an alternative for the classical Flory-Rehner theory. With these scaling laws, holding for polymer concentrations in the semi-dilute regime, experimental data on deswelling of gels can be collapsed to a single universal master curve. The predictions made with the scaling laws are similar to those made with the modified Flory-Rehner, where the osmotic pressure is described with a composition-dependent interaction parameter. For gels in the semi-dilute regime we recommend the use of the scaling laws, because their compact, and universal character.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)94-101
JournalFood Hydrocolloids
Volume48
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jun 2015

Keywords

  • Gel
  • Swelling
  • Water holding capacity

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