Polyvinyl Alcohol/Egg White/Na-Montmorillonite Nanocomposite Hydrogels

A series of nanocomposite hydrogels based on egg white and polyvinyl alcohol containing 0, 5, 10 and 15 wt % of Na-montmorillonite nanoclay were prepared by freezing- thawing method. The morphology, gel fraction, swelling ability and dynamic mechanical properties of the prepared nanocomposite hydrogels were investigated. The resultsshowed that the prepared nanocomposite hydrogel have an exfoliated morphology. It was shown that by increasing the Na-MMT loading level, the gel fraction and the storage modulus of nanocomposite hydrogels are increased whiletheir swelling capability decreased