Swelling capacity

The swelling capacity of a polymer is the amount of a liquid that can be absorbed by it. This test can done by two methods:

  1. Beaker test method
  2. Tea bag test method

Beaker test method

In this method

  • A small amount of superabsorbent polymer material is taken (0.1g) and it is placed in the beaker.
  • 100 ml of deionized water is poured into the beaker.
  • After 20 min the swollen polymer was separated by using [filter paper]
  • By weighing the polymer, one can find the swollen capacity of the SAP material.

Tea bag test method
  • In this method, 0.1 g of SAP material is placed into a permeable bag, which is suspended over excess water in a beaker.
  • Wait 20 min. and weigh the bag and then calculate the percentage of swelling through the following formula:
    (w2-w1)/(w1)  %
    w1= weight of the polymer (Before swelling)
    w2= weight of the polymer (After swelling)
  • Note: Filter paper only for removing water.

References


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