Preparation of a poly(L-lactide-co-caprolactone) copolymer using a novel tin(II) alkoxide initiator and its fiber processing for potential use as an absorbable monofilament surgical suture |
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| Authors: | Sujitra Ruengdechawiwat Jintana Siripitayananon Runglawan Somsunan Paul D. Topham Brian J. Tighe |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Biomedical Polymers Technology Unit, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand;2. Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering and Applied Science, Aston University, Birmingham, England |
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| Abstract: | A poly(L-lactide-co-caprolactone) copolymer, P(LL-co-CL), of composition 75:25 mol% was synthesized via the bulk ring-opening copolymerization of L-lactide and ε-caprolactone using a novel bis[tin(II) monooctoate] diethylene glycol coordination-insertion initiator, OctSn-OCH2CH2OCH2CH2O-SnOct. The P(LL-co-CL) copolymer obtained was characterized by a combination of analytical techniques, namely nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, dilute-solution viscometry, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analysis. For processing into a monofilament fiber, the copolymer was melt spun with minimal draw to give a largely amorphous and unoriented as-spun fiber. The fiber's oriented semicrystalline morphology, necessary to give the required balance of mechanical properties, was then developed via a sequence of controlled offline hot-drawing and annealing steps. Depending on the final draw ratio, the fibers obtained had tensile strengths in the region of 200–400 MPa. |
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| Keywords: | Caprolactone L-lactide melt spinning monofilament fiber poly(L-lactide-co-caprolactone) ring-opening polymerization surgical suture tin(II) alkoxide |
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