A hydrogel from acrylic acid and hydroxypropyl cellulose was made. The percentages of raw materials and crosslinkers were varied and its swelling behavior was evaluated. Some of the gels obtained absorbed more than 300% wt. The gels with higher swelling percentages were characterized by means of IR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamical mechanical analysis (DMA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The FTIR showed the presence of the main reactants in the gel, while the DSC showed a phase separation in the gel. This gel is partly biodegradable because of the content of hydroxypropyl cellulose and has the viscoelastic properties of poly(acrylic acid). Published: 9 November, 2008.