Diffusion of glucose and maltose in polyacrylamide gel

The diffusion of glucose and maltose in different polyacrylamide gels (PAAG) was investigated. The method applied was non-steady-state diffusion into gel beads from a finite solution. The diffusion coefficients were determined applying Crank’s solution of the diffusion equation. It was found that the diffusion coefficients in PAAG were about 15–85% lower than the corresponding coefficients in water, depending on gel composition. The influence of different factors, such as monomer concentration, cross-linking ratio, temperature, concentration of the diffusing substance, ionic strength, and the amount of the entrapped enzyme were tested.