Optimum parameters for the production of nano-scale electrospun polycaprolactone to be used as a biomedical material

Basma Ekram, Bothaina M Abdel-Hady, Abeer M El-kady, Sherif M Amr, Ahmed I Waley and Osiris W Guirguis

Abstract

Electrospun nano-polycaprolactone (PCL) is an ideal candidate for biomedical applications, as it mimics the extracellular matrix and possesses good biocompatibility, biodegradability and mechanical properties. Formic acid/acetic acid (FA/AA) and formic acid/acetone (FA/A) solvent systems were reported to be the safest solvents for the preparation of nanoscale electrospun polycaprolactone and they are also a common solvent with many natural polymers. In the present study a comparison between the electrospun fibers produced by the two systems was done. The optimum conditions for preparing PCL nanofibers were studied. The results indicated that finer fibers were found for formic acid/acetic acid in comparison with those produced by formic acid/acetone solvent system. In addition, it was found that optimum conditions for PCL nanofibers electrospinning were detected for 70:30 FA/AA solvent ratio with 15% PCL concentration and a tip to collector distance of 12.5 cm at 20 kV