Effect of porosity and pore size on microstructures and mechanical properties of poly‐ε‐caprolactone‐ hydroxyapatite composites
- 11 March 2008
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wiley in Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials
- Vol. 86B (2), 541-547
- https://doi.org/10.1002/jbm.b.31054
Abstract
The influence of variant pore-size and porosity on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL) and hydroxyapatite (HA) composite were examined for an optimal scaffold in bone tissue engineering. Three various amounts of sodium chloride (NaCl, as porogens) with two distinct particle size ranges (212–355 μm and 355–600 μm) were blended into PCL and HA mixture, followed by a leaching technique to generate PCL-HA scaffolds with various pores and porosity. The porosities of the scaffolds were correlated with the porogen size and concentration. The morphological properties of the resulting scaffolds were assessed by micro-computerized tomography (μCT), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX). Extensive PCL-HA pore interconnections with thinner pore walls were present in scaffolds with higher concentration (4:1 w/w) and larger particulate of porogen used in the fabrication process. Embedding of HA particles in the scaffold resulted in rough surfaces on the composites. Instron actuator testing indicated that the tensile strengths and Young's moduli of scaffolds were influenced by both the porosities and pore sizes of the scaffold. It was apparent that increasing the concentration of porogen compromised the mechanical properties; and a larger porogen particle size led to increased tensile strength but a reduction in Young's modulus. Overall, the data indicated that modification of the concentration and particle size of porogen altered the porous features and mechanical strength of HA-PCL scaffolds. This provided means to manipulate the properties of biocompatible cell-supporting scaffolds for use as bone graft substitutes. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2008Keywords
This publication has 28 references indexed in Scilit:
- SEM and 3D synchrotron radiation micro‐tomography in the study of bioceramic scaffolds for tissue‐engineering applicationsBiotechnology & Bioengineering, 2006
- Effect of fluoridation of hydroxyapatite in hydroxyapatite-polycaprolactone composites on osteoblast activityBiomaterials, 2005
- Development of guided bone regeneration membrane composed of β-tricalcium phosphate and poly (l-lactide-co-glycolide-co-ε-caprolactone) compositesBiomaterials, 2004
- The effect of rhBMP-2 on canine osteoblasts seeded onto 3D bioactive polycaprolactone scaffoldsBiomaterials, 2004
- Natural and Synthetic Hydroxyapatite Filled PCL: Mechanical Properties and Biocompatibility AnalysisJournal of Bioactive and Compatible Polymers, 2004
- Permeability and conductivity for reconstruction models of porous mediaPhysical Review E, 2001
- Polymeric biomaterialsActa Materialia, 2000
- Role of material surfaces in regulating bone and cartilage cell responseBiomaterials, 1996
- Quantification of connectivity in cancellous bone, with special emphasis on 3-D reconstructionsBone, 1993
- Interporous Hydroxyapatite as a Bone Graft Substitute in Tibial Plateau FracturesClinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 1989