Porous biodegradable polyesters. II. Physical properties,morphology, and enzymatic and alkaline hydrolysis of porous poly(ϵ‐caprolactone) films |
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Authors: | Hideto Tsuji Takeharu Ishizaka |
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Abstract: | Porous poly(?‐caprolactone) (PCL) films were prepared by water extraction of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) from their solution‐cast phase‐separated blend films and the dependence of their blend ratio XPCL = PCL/(PEO + PCL)] and molecular weight of PEO on the porosity, pore size, crystallinity, crystalline thickness, mechanical properties, morphology, and enzymatic and alkaline hydrolysis of the porous PCL films were investigated. The film porosity or extracted weight ratio was in good agreement with the expected values, irrespective of XPCL and molecular weight of PEO. The maximum pore size was larger for the porous films prepared using PEO having a lower molecular weight, compared with films prepared using PEO having a higher molecular weight at the same XPCL. Differential scanning calorimetry of the porous PCL films revealed that their crystallinity and crystalline thickness were almost constant, regardless of XPCL and molecular weight of PEO. The Young's modulus and tensile strength of the porous films decreased, whereas the elongation‐at‐break increased with decreasing XPCL. The enzymatic and alkaline hydrolysis rates of the porous films increased with a decrease in XPCL and an increase in the molecular weight of PEO. The porous PCL films having Young's modulus in the range of 2–24 kg/mm2 and enzymatic hydrolysis rate in the range of one‐ to 20‐fold that of the nonporous PCL film could be prepared by altering XPCL and the molecular weight of PEO. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 80: 2281–2291, 2001 |
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Keywords: | poly(ϵ ‐caprolactone) poly(ethylene oxide) enzymatic hydrolysis physical properties porous biodegradable polymers |
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