Aquasorbent guargum grafted hyperbranched poly (acrylic acid): A potential culture medium for microbes and plant tissues

• Published in: Carbohydrate polymers 2019-10, Vol.222, p.114983-114983, Article 114983
• Main Authors: Das, Tamalika, Sengupta, Srijoni, Pal, Abhijit, Sardar, Soumen, Sahu, Nilanjan, Lenka, Naisargik, Panigrahi, Kishore C.S., Goswami, Luna, Bandyopadhyay, Abhijit
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aquasorbent; Gelling agent; Hyperbranched; Strathclyde methodology
• ISSN: 0144-8617; 1879-1344
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2019.114983

[Display omitted] •Design of a hybrid material of guargum and hyperbranched polymer by grafting.•Hybrid material proved to be an efficient water-absorbing polymer.•Hybrid material served as a gelling agent for the culture of cyanobacteria.•Hybrid material served as an effective medium for plant growth. This study reports the synthesis of an unprecedented bio-based aquasorbent guargum-g-hyperbranched poly (acrylic acid); bGG-g-HBPAA by employing graft-copolymerization and “Strathclyde methodology” simultaneously in emulsion and its possible use as a sustainable nutrient bed for the effective growth of Anabaena cylindrica and Vigna radiata seedlings. The formation of bGG-g-HBPAA and the presence of hyperbranched architectures was confirmed from XRD, FTIR, 13C NMR, solubility, intrinsic viscosity, BET surface area/ pore size, SEM and rheology analyses. The synthesized grade with a branching percent of 65.4% and a swelling percentage of 13,300% facilitated maximum growth of the cultured species as compared to guargum and its linear graft. Semi synthetic bGG-g-HBPAA culture medium was optically transparent, dried at a controlled rate, held a huge amount of water for growth, provided sufficient space for unhindered growth and featured dimensional stability.