Carboxymethyl cellulose-polyvinyl alcohol based materials: A review

Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) - Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) based materials have gained popularity over the years due to ease in synthesis and surface modifications coupled with diverse morphological features. CMC, a cellulose derivative, possesses high viscosity, film-forming ability, biodegradability and cytocompatibility and is a well-known biopolymer with wide abundance in nature. A remarkable improvement in the mechanical strength, thermal stability and flexibility of the polymeric structure of CMC is observed when it is cross-linked with hydrophilic biopolymer PVA. It is a synthetic polymer synthesized via partially or completely hydroxylating vinyl acetate. This review article evaluates various properties and applications of different types of CMC-PVA-based materials (hydrogels, beads, scaffolds, etc.) in agriculture, biomedical, environmental and food packaging.