Temperature-Swing Adsorption of Nonionic Surfactant with Photo-Crosslinked Polymeric Gel

Three kinds of temperature-sensitive gels are synthesized from a photo-crosslinkable prepolymer, ENTP-4000 or ENT-3400, and a functional monomer, and their potentiality as an adsorbent for temperature-swing adsorption is investigated. The ENT-type hydrophilic gels show reversible swelling-shrinking behavior in response to thermal stimulus, while the ENTP-type hydrophobic gel shows no volume change. The adsorbed amount of nonionic surfactant Triton X-102 on the ENTP-type gel drastically increased with shifting temperature from 283 to 293 K. Considerable change in the adsorbed amount of the surfactant on the ENT-type gels is also observed. These results confirm the high potentiality of the photo-crosslinked gels as an adsorbent for temperature-swing adsorption process.