Swelling studies of chitosan-gelatin films cross-linked by sulfate

Swelling properties of chitosan-gelatin films cross-linked by sulfate were investigated. Sulfate cross-linked chitosan-gelatin films (SCG) were prepared simply by dipping chitosan-gelatin films into sodium sulfate solution. The swelling behavior of SCG was investigated as a function of pH and ionic strength. Under acidic conditions pH less than 4, SCG swelled less than 120%, while under the conditions pH larger than 7.4, SCG swelled very significantly, the swelling ratio was over 350%. Sodium chloride weakened the electrostatic interaction between sulfate and amine ions of chitosan and gelatin, therefore facilitated the film swelling. The swelling ratio increased with increasing sodium chloride concentration, the SCG dissociated in the sodium chloride concentration of 0.20 mol·L−1. The parameters of film preparation such as sulfate concentration, dipping time, sulfate solution pH, influenced the film swelling behavior. The lower concentration and the higher pH of sulfate solution resulted in a larger swelling ratio.