Polyacrylamide/acrylate – hydrogel

Polyacrylamide / acrylate is a copolymer of acrylamide and acrylic acid (normally supplied as the sodium salt) that is cross-linked sufficiently to render it insoluble in water but which retains its hydrophilic nature. It therefore can absorb a very large amount of water, swelling proportionately as it does so. The amount of water that can be absorbed by Polyacrylamide / acrylate is typically around 400 times the weight of polymer if the water is completely free of solutes, decreasing quite markedly as the level of solute(s) increases.