Synthesis and water absorbency of the copolymer of acrylamide with anionic monomers

Abstract

Abstract A series of novel copolymer superabsorbents based on acrylamide, sodium allylsulfonate, sodium acrylate, and N,N ′‐methylenebisacrylamide were prepared by copolymerization. The resulting superabsorbents have a fast swelling rate. The experimental results show that absorbency increases to a maximum as the cross‐linking increases, but an excess of cross‐linking leads to a swelling decrease. Their water retention was observed at pressures of 1–10 kg/cm 2 and temperatures of 60 and 100°C, respectively. The water retention of soil has been enhanced by using the poly(acrylamide–sodium allysulfonate–sodium acrylate) superabsorbent; its use for bean growth was also investigated. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.