Hydrogels Processing Techniques

Hydrogels have emerged as an adaptable class of biomaterials because of their significant applications in the biomedical field, environmental remediation, agriculture, cosmetics, and food industry. Over the years, numerous methods have been reported to have control over the properties of hydrogels. This section follows the physical and chemical processes of crosslinking polymers, hybrid strategies, and polymerization techniques that have revolutionized the processing of hydrogels in numerous ways. This chapter also highlights the role of constituent molecules, including monomers, cross-linkers, and nanocomposite materials in synthesizing hydrogels for specific applications, such as stimuli sensitivity, swellability, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and mechanical strength. The biocompatible and stability challenges have also been addressed as a significant hurdle for their scalability.