Thermally Initiated Trans-esterification in Poly(ε-caprolactone) and Its Dependence on Molecular Weight

Thermally Initiated Trans-esterification in Poly(ε-caprolactone) and Its Dependence on Molecular Weight

Biodegradability and biocompatibility of poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) are the prime properties which advanced the use of this polymer in fields of tissue engineering and biomedicals. Being an aliphatic polyester, PCL is prone to undergo trans-esterification which is one of the mechanisms reported for...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of polymers and the environment Vol. 22; no. 4; pp. 479 - 487
Main Authors: Pal, Jit, Sanwaria, Sunita, Choudhary, Aman, Thakur, Kapeesh, Nandan, Bhanu, Srivastava, Rajiv K.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Boston Springer US 01-12-2014
Springer
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Aliphatic compounds
Applied sciences
Biodegradable materials
Biodegradation
Biomedical engineering
Bioplastics
Chemical modifications
Chemical reactions
Chemical reactions and properties
Chemistry
Chemistry and Materials Science
Degradation
Environmental Chemistry
Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology
Exact sciences and technology
Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering
Materials Science
Molecular weight
Networks
Organic polymers
Original Paper
Physicochemistry of polymers
Polyester resins
Polymer Sciences
Polymers
Reduction
Degradation
Poly(ε-caprolactone)
Heat
Trans-esterification
Molecular weight
Intramolecular reaction
Reaction product
Mechanical properties
Competitive reaction
Tensile property
Thermal reaction
Transesterification
Experimental study
Lactone polymer
Reaction mechanism
Intermolecular reaction
Polycaprolactone
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Summary:Biodegradability and biocompatibility of poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) are the prime properties which advanced the use of this polymer in fields of tissue engineering and biomedicals. Being an aliphatic polyester, PCL is prone to undergo trans-esterification which is one of the mechanisms reported for its degradation besides being used in making its copolymers. Trans-esterification occurs both, inter- and intra-molecularly and in this work we report that the mechanism of trans-esterification depends on the molecular weight of the polymer when it is subjected to 160 °C for time up to 24 h. For low molecular weight PCL (M p  = 10,000 g/mol) inter-molecular trans-esterification is the predominant mechanism while for the high molecular weight PCL (M p  = 80,000 g/mol) it is intra-molecular. A mid molecular weight PCL (M p  = 43,000 g/mol) showed presence of both, inter- as well as intra-molecular trans-esterification, when heated at 160 °C for 24 h. A decrease in relative crystallinity for all the samples showed reduction in crystalline component of the polymer confirming occurrence of trans-esterification at chosen conditions. An increase in tensile strength and modulus is observed after treatment at 160 °C for 24 h due to formation of more entangled network of polymer chains as a result of trans-esterification reactions.
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ISSN:1566-2543
1572-8919
1572-8900
DOI:10.1007/s10924-014-0669-4