Preparation and swelling behavior of a novel self-assembled β-cyclodextrin/acrylic acid/sodium alginate hydrogel

A novel biodegradable β-cyclodextrin/acrylic acid/sodium alginate (CSA) hydrogel with a three-dimensional network structure was self-assembled by inverse suspension copolymerization. The CSA resin was pH sensitive and had good water absorption properties in pH 6–8 buffer solutions. At a β-CD:AA:SA mass ratio of 1:9:3 the CSA water absorbency was found to be 1403 g/g and the CSA hydrogel strength was 4.968 N. In 0.005–0.1 mol/L chloride salt and sulfate salt solutions the CSA water absorbencies increased as follows: NaCl > KCl > MgCl2 > CaCl2 > FeCl3, and Na2SO4 > K2SO4 > FeSO4 > Al2(SO4)3, respectively. The release of water from the CSA hydrogel occurred slowly over 120 h. The biodegradation efficiency of the resin reached 85.3% for Lentinula edodes. The super water absorbency, good salt resistance and excellent water retention properties of CSA make it suitable for application as an agricultural water retention agent in saline soils.