Polymer Gels Fundamentals and Applications ACS Symposium Series, Vol. No. 833

The emphasis of this book is on new advances in polymer gels, particularly with biomedical applications in mind. At the same time, current progress in synthesis, characterization, and physicochemical characterization and properties are highlighted. Section I deals with the fundamentals of the static and dynamic properties of polymer networks and gels. Section II is devoted to the applications of gels to medicine and biology, particularly the use of the gel medium for controlled drug delivery and encapsulation of proteins and enzymes. Section III covers the synthesis and characterization of novel polymeric networks and gels such as hydrogels, cyanogels, and gels of amphiphilic block copolymers. Section IV discusses visco-elastic properties of gels and cross-linked networks, interactions between physical and chemical gels, gel formation and interactions with vesicles, and photo-responsive rheological behavior.

Preface, IntroductionErik Geissler: , The Gel State, 1: Marianne E. Harmon and Curtis W. Frank: Kinetics of the N-Isopropylacrylamide Gel-Volume Phase Transition in the Presence of Free Polymer Chains, 2: Yotaro Morishima, Tetsuya Noda, and Akihito Hashidzume: Transient Network of Random Copolymers of Sodium 2-(Acrylamido)-2-methylpropanesulfonate and Associative Macromonomers, 3: Wilhelm Oppermann, Brigitte Lindemann, and Bettina Vgerl: Network Inhomogeneities in Polymer Gels, 4: Simon B. Ross-Murphy: Thermoreversible and Irreversible Physical Gels from Biopolymers, 5: Hiroshi Urakawa, Yoshiaki Yuguchi, Yuko Ikeda, Kanji Kajiwara, Yoshitaka Hirata, and Shinzo Kohjiya: Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Gel: Structural Characteristics and Formation Mechanism, Novel Gels, 6: Harry R. Allcock and Archel Ambrosio: Synthesis and Characterization of pH-Responsive Poly(organophosphazene) Hydrogels, 7: Waldo Argelles-Monal, Francisco M. Goycoolea, Jaime Lizardi, Carlos Peniche, and Inocencio Higuera-Ciapara: Chitin and Chitosan in Gel Network Systems, 8: Dirk van Eck, Siegfried Hring, Karsten Busse, and Jrg Kressler: The Behavior of Amphiphilic Block Copolymers in Water and Their Association Behavior, 9: L. A. Bimendina, G. T. Zhumadilova, and S. E. Kudaibergenov: Phase Transitions in Interpolymer Complexes of Some Linear and Cross-Linked Polymers, 10: S. E. Kudaibergenov,. Part 5: B. Sigitov, A. G. Didukh, and S. B. Moldakarimov: Structure of Polyampholyte Gels and Their Behavior with Respect to Applied External DC Electric Field, 11: Ravi Mukkamala, Aaron M. Kushner, and Carolyn R. Bertozzi: Hydrogel Polymers from Alkylthio Acrylates for Biomedical Applications, 12: Kevin Kulbaba, Mark J. MacLachlan, Christopher E. B. Evans, and Ian Manners: Stimuli-Responsive Gels Based on Ring-Opened Polyferrocenes: Synthesis, Characterization, and Electrochemical Studies of Swellable, Thermally Cross-Linked Polyferrocenylsilanes, Rheology and Gel Interactions, 13: Nov Markovic, Naba K. Dutta, David R. G. Williams, and Jani Matisons: Hydrocarbon Gels: Rheological Investigation of Structure, 14: Jean Pascal Eloundou, Jean Franois Grard, and Jean Pierre Pascault: Rheology of Epoxy-Amine Systems Near the Gel Point, 15.: Ivan Gitsov, Thomas Lys, and Chao Zhu: Amphiphilic Hydrogels with Highly Ordered Hydrophobic Dendritic Domains, 16: N. Ravi, A. Mitra, L. Zhang, P. Kannan, and B. A. Szab: The Effect of Hydrophobicity on the Viscoelastic Creep Characteristics of Poly(ethylene glycol)-Acrylate Hydrogels, 17: Elizabeth A. Wilder, Scott A. White, Steven D. Smith, and Richard J. Spontak: Gel Network Development in AB, ABA, and AB/ABA Block Copolymer Solutions in a Selective Solvent, 18: G. Pouliquen,. Part 1: Porcar. C. Tribet, and C. Amiel: Photoresponsive Thickening in Polyamphiphile-Based Physical Gels: The Examples of Micelle, Protein, and Cyclodextrin Cross-Linkers, Gels in Medicine and Biology, 19: J. P. Kennedy, G. Fenyvesi, S. Na, B. Keszler, and K. S. Rosenthal: Amphiphilic Gels with Controlled Mesh Dimensions for Insulin Delivery, 20: Young Jin Kim and Sung Wan Kim: Controlled Drug Delivery from Injectable Biodegradable Triblock Copolymer, 21: Dirk Kuckling, Hans-Jrgen P. Adler, and Karl-Friedrich Arndt: (N-isopropylacrylamide) Copolymers: Hydrogel Formation via Photocrosslinking, 22: Chikako Yomota and Satoshi Okada: Various Interactions of Drugs with Cross-Linked Hyaluronate Gel, Indexes, Author Index, Subject Index