The Influence of Lyophilization Pretreatment and Whey Content on Whey and Gelatin-Based Hydrogels

Whey and gelatin, natural polymers within the protein category, find widespread use in hydrogel formulations applied across the food, medical, and pharmaceutical industries. This study presents new characteristics of hydrogels based on whey, gelatin, and copper sulfate as a consequence of the additional steps in the preparation method, specifically refrigeration and freezing storage followed by lyophilization. The water state in hydrogels prior to lyophilization impacts the morphological appearance, with refrigerated hydrogels exhibiting a more regular and dense pore distribution, as shown by the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images. This observation aligns with the higher mobility of polymer chains indicated by T₂ distributions in ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (RMN) relaxometry measurements. Changes in the intensity and amide-specific wavenumbers of the FTIR spectra of whey and gelatin proteins are evident in the Fourier Transformed Infrared (FTIR) spectra of crosslinked and frozen hydrogels before lyophilization. Moreover, the reinforcing effect in the hydrogel matrix, noted in mechanical tests, is attributed to increased polymer chain content and copper sulfate crosslinking.