Enhanced piezoelectric response of hybrid biodegradable 3D poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) scaffolds coated with hydrothermally deposited ZnO for biomedical applications

• Published in: European polymer journal Vol. 117; pp. 272 - 279
• Main Authors: Zviagin, Andrei S., Chernozem, Roman V., Surmeneva, Maria A., Pyeon, Myeongwhun, Frank, Michael, Ludwig, Tim, Tutacz, Peter, Ivanov, Yurii F., Mathur, Sanjay, Surmenev, Roman A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01-08-2019; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Biodegradability; Biomedical materials; Ceramic fibers; Crystal structure; Deposition; Electric potential; Hybrid polymer scaffolds; Hydrothermal treatment; Morphology; Nanocomposites; Nanoparticles; Nanostructured materials; Photoelectrons; Piezoelectricity; Polyhydroxybutyrate; Polymers; Scaffolds; Wettability; Wurtzite; X ray photoelectron spectroscopy; X-ray diffraction; Zinc oxide; Zinc oxides; Piezoelectricity; Zinc oxide; Hybrid polymer scaffolds; Wettability; Hydrothermal treatment
• ISSN: 0014-3057; 1873-1945
• DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2019.05.016

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•Fibrous piezoelectric poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) scaffolds were fabricated.•Zinc oxide (ZnO) coating was deposited via hydrothermal deposition.•d33 coefficient for PHB scaffolds with ZnO coating is substantially increased.•ZnO rod-like nanostructured surface improved the wettability of PHB scaffolds.
Fibrous scaffolds based on biodegradable piezoelectric poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) polymers were fabricated via electrospinning. Hydrothermal deposition of zinc oxide (ZnO) on the surfaces of fibrous PHB scaffolds resulted in a homogeneous ZnO layer that grew conformally on the porous polymeric scaffold. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results confirmed the formation of a hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure of ZnO on the PHB fibres. XRD patterns, TEM and EDS analysis revealed a bimodal morphology with rod-like nanostructures that grew preferentially along the c-axis as well as nanoparticles that grew randomly. The piezoelectric charge coefficient d33 for pristine PHB scaffolds was 2.9 ± 0.1 pC⋅N−1, whereas after ZnO deposition, it substantially increased to 13.7 ± 1.6 pC⋅N−1. Moreover, the output surface electrical potential of PHB scaffolds after ZnO deposition also substantially increased from 0.58 ± 0.02 to 0.88 ± 0.04 V, showing enhanced electromechanical coupling in the piezoelectric nanocomposites. The output surface electric potential for ZnO-coated PHB scaffolds was stable within 1200 loading cycles. In addition, the ZnO rod-like nanostructured surface improved the wettability of PHB fibrous scaffolds, demonstrating synergy between the ceramic and polymeric phases in PHB/ZnO composites. Therefore, the hybrid biodegradable piezoelectric scaffolds reported in the present study are potentially useful for biomedical applications, where both improved piezoelectric response and surface wettability are required.