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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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Chemistry

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Theses and Dissertations

Theses/Dissertations

Polycaprolactone

Publication Year

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Electrospun Pcl And Pcl/Gel Microfiber Scaffolds As Prototypes For Anterior Cruciate Ligament (Acl) Regeneration And Repair, Diego Rivera Dec 2021

Electrospun Pcl And Pcl/Gel Microfiber Scaffolds As Prototypes For Anterior Cruciate Ligament (Acl) Regeneration And Repair, Diego Rivera

Theses and Dissertations

Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a polymer that has been a focus of tissue engineering due to its range of applicability for biomedical applications. Synthesis of PCL from a microwave-assisted and stannous octoate-catalyzed ring-opening reaction with ε-caprolactone was accomplished. Aligned-fiber microfiber mats were generated via electrospinning for characterization. PCL microfiber mats were characterized via FTIR and scanning electron microscopy. These PCL microfiber mats were mechanically tested to examine their applicability as tools for knee ligament repair. During tensile testing, non-fiber aligned mats lacked the sufficient elastic modulus. Fiber-aligned PCL samples both and gelatin-coated were tested and showed enhanced elastic modulus and extension …


Microwave-Assisted Ring-Opening Polymerization Of Poly(Ε-Caprolactone), Nancy Obregon May 2018

Microwave-Assisted Ring-Opening Polymerization Of Poly(Ε-Caprolactone), Nancy Obregon

Theses and Dissertations

Poly(ϵ-caprolactone) (PCL) is a biodegradable polyester notorious by its promising properties and applications in the biomedical field. In this work, microwave-assisted ringopening polymerization (ROP) of ϵ-caprolactone (ϵ-CL) was performed. Stannous octoate [Sn(Oct)2] was used as catalyst with and without an alcohol initiator. The different initiators tested were glycerol, diethylene glycol (DEG) and poly(ethylene) glycol (PEG). Aiming to establish reaction parameters, the influence of different reaction times, temperatures, and monomer:initiator:catalyst ratios were examined. It was observed that the reaction was obtained and high molecular weight PCL was achieved successfully without an initiator. However, mixed results were obtained using an initiator. Products …