Students Duygu Haspolat and Zeynep Güney from the Chemical Engineering Department of the Faculty of Engineering at Ondokuz Mayıs University (OMU) synthesized a next-generation material, a hydrogel structure, from the peels of Citrus maxima, commonly known as pomelo.

The developed hydrogel is intended to be used as a drug carrier and barrier material in wound dressings, and as a superabsorbent material in baby diapers and adult incontinence products. Project supervisor Prof. Dr. Feza Geyikçi stated, “After completing the laboratory studies, the use of this material within drug delivery systems may be evaluated.”

The project titled “Production and Characterization of Hydrogel from Citrus Maxima for Drug Delivery Systems,” prepared by undergraduate students from the OMU Chemical Engineering Department, was accepted for support within the scope of the undergraduate student projects program by the Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit.

Within the project supervised by Prof. Dr. Feza Geyikçi, Chemical Engineering students Duygu Haspolat and Zeynep Güney synthesized, for the first time worldwide, a next-generation hydrogel material from the peels of Citrus maxima, known locally as pomelo.

While the developed hydrogel is aimed to be used as a drug carrier and barrier material in wound dressings and as a superabsorbent in baby and patient diapers, it was noted that development studies for different application areas are ongoing. Speaking about the project work, Prof. Dr. Feza Geyikçi said, “Within the scope of this study, we focused on the synthesis of hydrogels, which are among next-generation materials, and aimed to carry out this process by utilizing natural agricultural waste.”

“It can be used as a superabsorbent and moisture-retaining material”

Stating that they produced a hydrogel structure from pomelo peel for the first time, Prof. Dr. Geyikçi said, “By using the peels of Citrus maxima, which is grown in the southern regions of our country and commonly known as pomelo, we attempted to synthesize new hydrogels with high hydrophilic properties and superabsorbent characteristics. Within the scope of the project, our studies on determining these synthesis conditions are ongoing. The fact that hydrogels are next-generation materials, can be used as drug carriers, exhibit superabsorbent properties especially in wound dressings and baby diapers, and have the potential to be used in different fields thanks to their biodegradable and biocompatible structures constituted the most important motivation source for this project.”

Prof. Dr. Feza Geyikçi concluded her remarks as follows:

“It is possible for Citrus maxima peels, which are considered agricultural waste, to be used as a superabsorbent and moisture-retaining material in an industrial sector. In later stages, after completing laboratory studies as a priority, the use of this material within drug delivery systems may also be evaluated, although this requires a long-term process. In addition, the possibility of using hydrogels as wound dressings by adding different components to their structure may also come to the agenda. Our main objective here is to synthesize the raw material in the most suitable way or to obtain different hydrogels by changing synthesis conditions according to the intended application area, to carry out tests of these products, and to bring them into production.”