Complex Coacervate-Based Materials for Biomedicine: Recent Advancements and Future Prospects
Partha Sarathi Roy
Abstract
Complex coacervation, a specific type of associative phase separation that happens when oppositely charged macro-ions (or polyelectrolytes) are mixed, is the formation of a dense macro-ion-rich phase (the coacervate) in equilibrium with a dilute macro-ion-poor phase (the continuous phase or supernatant). Since Bungenberg de Jong and colleagues’ ground-breaking work on the gelatin–acacia gum complex coacervation in the 1920s and 1940s, coacervates have drawn increasing research attention because they are essential to a wide range of established and developing technologies. Charge complexation in solution may play a role in this association. Unfortunately, misconceptions about the theoretical foundations of complex coacervation are common, and conceptual errors have persisted in the literature. This Review is an attempt to provide a concise and comprehensive overview of the main research streams pursued in this field regarding the parameters influencing the formation of complex coacervates, encompassing various technological aspects enabling the investigation of complex coacervates in industrial applications. Coacervate complex formation is a well-known and widely used, but poorly understood, phenomenon in physical polymer science. Finally, a critical assessment of perspectives and anticipated difficulties in the further development and improvement of next-generation materials is suggested, and insights into the field’s future prospects are explored.