Solution Blow Spun Poly(ethylene oxide)/Poly-ε-caprolactone System: Properties and Dissolution in Water

Abstract

In the present work, fibrous materials based on poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL), and a mixture of them (PEO/PCL) have been prepared by solution blow spinning (SBS). The rotation speed of the collector of the SBS device (500, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, and 3000 rpm) has been chosen as the processing variable to modify the materials’ morphologies. The structures of the polymer systems have been evaluated by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, and the morphologies have been inspected by field emission scanning electron microscopy, while thermal and mechanical behaviors have been studied by differential scanning calorimetry and tensile tests, respectively. Dissolution in water has been monitored by optical microscopy and video recording. As a proof of concept, the capacities of the systems under study to release a model drug have been tested by loading the materials with silver(I) sulfadiazine (SSD) and then immersing them in a buffer solution and monitoring the process through the intrinsic fluorescence of SSD. Our results indicate that there are no changes at the molecular level, but there is a change in the morphology of the material as a function of the rotation speed of the collector. These morphological variations, together with the composition of the system, affect the mechanical behavior of the material, the dissolution process in water, and the drug release. These factors are relevant if the blow spun material is intended for biomedical applications in which an active agent has to be released in a controlled manner.

Characterization of Blow-Spun Polyurethane Scaffolds–Influence of Fiber Alignment and Fiber Diameter on Pericyte Growth

“…The rotation speed of the collector is one of the SBS process parameters that affects fiber morphology. According to literature, uniformly arranged fibers are acquired in the SBS process by increasing the rotation speed of the collector. ,, In our previous study, we evaluated the influence of the polymer solution concentration, compressed gas pressure, and polymer solution flow rate on the fiber diameter and number of defects on the scaffold surface . Here, we investigated the impact of the rotation speed of the collector on the PU fiber alignment with respect to the fiber diameter.…”

“…According to literature, uniformly arranged fibers are acquired in the SBS process by increasing the rotation speed of the collector. 33,42,43 In our previous study, we evaluated the influence of the polymer solution concentration, compressed gas pressure, and polymer solution flow rate on the fiber diameter and number of defects on the scaffold surface. 32 For materials with an average fiber diameter of 1000 nm stretched in a along direction, a significant reduction in Young's modulus value was observed for samples with nonaligned fibers in comparison to aligned (p ≤ 0.001); Samples elongation at break values were greater for more elastic materials (lower YM values), however, there were no meaningful differences regardless of stretching direction, fiber diameter, or alignment.…”

Solution Blow Spinning to Prepare Preferred Oriented Poly(ethylene oxide) Submicrometric Fibers

“…Besides, it is neither toxic nor sensitive to pH and physiological fluids. On the other hand, PEO presents the ability to be processed using SBS to obtain non-woven mats constituted by submicrometric fibers as it is reflected in other works [1,35,36].…”