Enhanced Biodegradability of Pectin-Chitosan Eutectogels Synthesized with Deep Eutectic Solvents

Natural-based hydrogels are popular due to their biodegradation ability compared to synthetic-based hydrogels which are more environmentally sustainable. However, natural-based hydrogels exhibit slow degradation and may require an enhancer to accelerate the degradation process. In this study, deep eutectic solvent (DES) has been added as an enhancer to increase the process of biodegradation in pectin-chitosan hydrogels. The study has investigated the biodegradability of this new hydrogel after being modified with three different hydrogen bond donors (HBD) in DESs by measuring weight loss through the soil burial method. The results show the pectin and chitosan hydrogel with the addition of DESs known as eutectogels have a higher percentage of weight loss compared to their control (without DES). Eutectogels with different HBDs which are ethylene glycol, glycerol, and acetic acid are recorded as 76.02%, 72.14%, and 86.21% weight loss, respectively, while their control recorded 65.11% of weight loss in soil burial testing for 148 days. The addition of DES in pectin-chitosan-based hydrogel accelerates the degradation and improves the biodegradability of the eutectogel in soil. This demonstrates the potential of these eutectogels as biodegradable materials, offering promising applications in environmentally sensitive fields.