Preparation of polyethyleneglycol (PEG) coatings for microencapsulation of charcoal

Polyethyleneglycols (PEGs) with their high solubility in water cannot normally be used as a coating material in aqueous solutions such as blood. A gamma-radiation procedure was therefore applied after coating charcoal granules with PEG in a non-aqueous phase, and an 80-90% insoluble polymer matrix on charcoal was obtained. PEGs with different molecular weights from 4000 to 300,000 were used for coating. The performance of this system was determined by using several test solutes, namely creatinine, uric acid, and vitamin B-12. It was observed that the pore size and structure of these membranes can be adjusted by changing the irradiation time and by using PEGs with different molecular weights. Thus, very high mass transfer rates can be achieved.