Table 1.

Main characteristics of the drying methods for polysaccharide hydrogels.

Drying Method	Particle Inner Structure	Advantages	Disadvantages
Conventional Dielectric Drying	XEROGEL	▪Simple, rapid and cheap ▪High shrinkage	▪Presence of capillary forces that destroy part of the inner structure
Supercritical-Assisted Drying	AEROGEL	▪No shrinkage of the porous inner texture	▪High cost ▪Need of aqueous/organic solvent exchange
Freeze-Drying	CRYOGEL	▪Low shrinkage ▪Higher pore Diameter	▪High cost ▪Need of aqueous/organic solvent exchange