Cellulose-based hydrogels: Present and future

Abstract

Cellulose, the most abundant natural polymer is extracted from various renewable resources, such as plant fibers (cotton, jute, hemp, linen, wood fibers, etc.) and is also generated by some bacteria, fungi, and animals. Currently, cellulose is extracted from tea, bamboo, linseed, and cellulose lignin as a natural polymer in various industrial applications, such as paper, textiles, adsorbents, drug delivery, cosmetics, tissue engineering, etc., because of its easy availability from natural sources, low price, easy extraction and processing, renewability, non-toxicity, biodegradability, ecological friendliness, and favorable physico-mechanical properties. Recently, hydrogels composed of cellulose have been used in several industrial applications. These hydrogels are mainly prepared through crosslinking, polymer-blending, formation of interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs), and graft-copolymerization. This chapter provides an overview on the present scenario and future aspects of cellulose hydrogels and their applications.