Timelapse of hydrogel swelling

Timelapse of hydrogel swelling, showing a 1.5-hour-long process in 6 seconds.

In a follow-up study to a successful Discovery activity, a research team from the Polymer Chemistry and Biomaterials Group (PBM) at Ghent University in Belgium are testing the potential of 3D-printed hydrogels – materials that can soak up large amounts of water – to serve as highly-effective radiation shields.