ABSTRACT:Montmorillonite was modified with N,N -dimethyl-N-dodecyl methacryloxylethyl ammonium bromide (DMAEA-DB), and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as the intercalation agent. Then, a series of different types of superabsorbent composites based on the monomers acrylic acid (AA), acrylamide (AM), and organic montmorillonite (OMMT) were synthesized through inverse suspension polymerization. The superabsorbent hydrogels prepared were characterized by X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer; and the swelling behaviors of the hydrogels were also investigated. Results showed that the intercalation was successful. The water absorbency for poly(AA-AM/DMAEA-DB-MMT) was always higher than that of poly(AA-AM/CTAB-MMT) in the range of the OMMT content investigated. The amount of OMMT also influenced the water absorbency of the hydrogels, they reached the highest water absorbency of 1100 g/g for the former at the content of 10%, and 875 g/g for the latter at the content of 6% in distilled water, respectively. The water absorbency decreased with the increase in the concentration of saline solutions for all the samples. The swelling behavior of the hydrogels was dependent on the pH. Poly(AA-AM/DMAEA-DB-MMT) had a better thermal stability than poly(AA-AM/CTAB-MMT), while having a lower water-retention capacity. C

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