SWELLING KINETICS AND RELEASE CHARACTERISTIC OF CROSS-LINKED CHITOSAN- POLYETHER POLYMER NETWORK (SEMI-IPN) HYDROGELS

The aqueous swelling kinetics of a series of crosslinked chitosan (cr- CS) with glutaraldehyde (GA) interpenetrating polyether hydrogels have been studied as functions of pH, the N-deacetylation degree of chitos an, the amount of crosslinking agent, the electrolyte composition in s olution, temperature, and gel composition. Based on these results, the swelling mechanism of the hydrogels was discussed. The release profil es of chlorhexidini acetas from the semi-IPN were also investigated. ( C) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.