Mechanical properties of biocompatible clay/P(MEO₂MA-co-OEGMA) nanocomposite hydrogels

The effects of crosslinking density, polymer concentration and monomer ratio on the mechanical properties (tensile and compressive properties) of biocompatible clay/P(MEO₂MA-co-OEGMA) nanocomposite (NC) hydrogels were investigated. These novel NC hydrogels, composed of inorganic/organic networks, were prepared via in-situ free radical polymerization. The results showed that with increasing inorganic crosslinking agent, i.e. clay concentration, an increase in the tensile strength, elongation at break and compressive strength was observed. Similarly, with increasing polymer concentration, the tensile strength and compressive strength of the NC hydrogels increased while the elongation at break decreased. Increasing the molar concentration of OEGMA in the comonomer led to an increase in the tensile strength of the NC hydrogels but a reduction in the compressive strength. Moreover, clay/P(MEO₂MA-co-OEGMA) NC hydrogels presented good biocompatibility bolstering their application as tissue engineering scaffolds.