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Hydrolytic Degradation of Aliphatic Polyesters Copolymerized with Poly(ethylene glycol)s
Author(s) -
Nagata Minoru,
Kiyotsukuri Tsuyoshi,
Takeuchi Shigeki,
Tsutsumi Naoto,
Sakai Wataru
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
polymer international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.592
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1097-0126
pISSN - 0959-8103
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0126(199701)42:1<33::aid-pi655>3.0.co;2-9
Subject(s) - ethylene glycol , peg ratio , copolymer , polymer chemistry , crystallinity , absorption of water , succinic acid , polyester , materials science , hydrolysis , condensation polymer , chemistry , organic chemistry , polymer , composite material , finance , economics
Poly(1,4‐butanediol succinate) copolymers were prepared by melt polycondensation of succinic acid and 1,4‐butanediol with 10–50mol% (in feed) of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), where molecular weight (MW) of PEG is 200–2000. The reduced specific viscosity of the copolymers increased with incorporation of the PEG component, but a higher PEG content in the copolymers reduced it. The temperature of melting ( T m ) and crystallinity decreased with increasing PEG content. T m depression of the copolymers followed approximately Flory’s equation, suggesting that these are random type copolymers. Tensile strength and elongation decreased with increasing MW and content of PEG. The weight loss of copolymer films in a buffer solution with or without lipase at 37°C, as well as water absorption, increased with increasing PEG content, implying that higher water absorption contributes to hydrolytic degradation of the films. However, the weight loss of copolymers with PEG of lower MW increased greatly in spite of lower water absorption, demonstrating that hydrolytic degradation is influenced by the concentration of degradable ester linkages between succinic acid and PEG segments rather than water absorption. © of SCI.