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This book presents the first comprehensive textbook on polymer gels worldwide, offering an in-depth understanding of these materials from both physico-chemical and biological perspectives. It begins with an overview of polymer gels, elucidating their significance in daily life and emphasizing their importance as a fundamental state of matter. This is followed by a discussion of the history, definition, and classification of polymer gels. This book explores a wide array of topics, from the basic properties of gels to their biomimetic functions, including aspects such as network formation, swelling, and their role in living organisms. Readers can swiftly comprehend the nature and significance of gels in daily life. Moreover, they will gain specialized knowledge about the kinetics and statistics of gel synthesis, methodology of investigation of structure, thermodynamics of swelling equilibrium, and distinctive mechanical behaviors (viscoelastic properties) of gels. This book also highlights the importance of gels within living organisms and examines future trends in gel science within biomedical fields. It is recommended for graduate and undergraduate students, emerging scientists, and industrial engineers. Specialists in chemistry, physics, and biology are encouraged to engage with this work to expand and enhance their scientific understanding.
List of contents
Preface to Japanese Edition.- Preface to English Edition.- Authors Biographies.- 1. Gel is a comprehensive state of matters.- 2. Basic properties of gel.- 3. Network Formation of Gels.- 4. Equilibrium Swelling of Gels.- 5. Swelling and Shrinking Kinetics.- 6. Mechanics and Rheology of Gels.- 7. Structure Analysis of Gels.- 8. Gels in Living Organism.- 9. Biomimetic Functions of Hydrogel.
About the author
Yoshihito Osada (Japanese) obtained his Bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Waseda University, Japan, in 1966, and received his Ph.D. in polymer science from Moscow State University in 1971 under supervision of Academician Prof. V.A. Kabanov. He held the position of Professor at Ibaraki University, Japan, from 1973 to 1991. In 1992, he was invited as a professor from the Department of Polymer Science, Hokkaido University (Sapporo), later served as a Dean of Graduate School of Science, then as the Vice President of Hokkaido University till 2007. He was invited from RIKEN in 2007 and served as a Deputy Director of RIKEN Advanced Science Institute till 2011. Since 2011, he serves as a Group Director and a Unit Leader of Molecular and System Life Science Unit. His main research interest is soft and wet matter (gels). He developed chemomechanical systems (artificial muscles) using polymer gels as early as 1975. Systematic study on frictional behaviors of polymer gel has been making through 1995. He also has developed Double Network Gels which exhibit excellent mechanical performances as strong as those of soft tissue of living organism. Currently his interests focus to highly hierarchical protein gels with “emergence” functions such as motility, self-repairing, self-oscillating functions.
Summary
This book presents the first comprehensive textbook on polymer gels worldwide, offering an in-depth understanding of these materials from both physico-chemical and biological perspectives. It begins with an overview of polymer gels, elucidating their significance in daily life and emphasizing their importance as a fundamental state of matter. This is followed by a discussion of the history, definition, and classification of polymer gels. This book explores a wide array of topics, from the basic properties of gels to their biomimetic functions, including aspects such as network formation, swelling, and their role in living organisms. Readers can swiftly comprehend the nature and significance of gels in daily life. Moreover, they will gain specialized knowledge about the kinetics and statistics of gel synthesis, methodology of investigation of structure, thermodynamics of swelling equilibrium, and distinctive mechanical behaviors (viscoelastic properties) of gels. This book also highlights the importance of gels within living organisms and examines future trends in gel science within biomedical fields. It is recommended for graduate and undergraduate students, emerging scientists, and industrial engineers. Specialists in chemistry, physics, and biology are encouraged to engage with this work to expand and enhance their scientific understanding.
