Novel low temperature (<37 °C) chitosan hydrogel fabrication under the synergistic effect of graphene oxide

A novel low temperature chitosan hydrogel (<37 °C) was fabricated via a simple mixing method under the synergistic effect of graphene oxide. The effect of the concentration of chitosan, β-glycerophosphate and graphene oxide on the gelation temperature and time of the chitosan hydrogel was studied. It can begin to form a gel at under 33 °C after adding 0.3 wt% graphene oxide, which is 6 °C lower than the temperature required for a chitosan hydrogel without graphene oxide. In addition, the gelation time is shortened to 9 min under the synergistic effect of graphene oxide. The controlled release of drugs from this hydrogel is also improved compared with that from traditional chitosan hydrogels. This novel low temperature hydrogel is expected to be applied in the field of hydrogel medical coatings.