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Thermal degradation of two classes of block copolymers based on poly(lactic‐glycolic acid) and poly(ϵ‐caprolactone) or poly(ethylene glycol)
Author(s) -
Bignotti Fabio,
Penco Maurizio,
Sartore Luciana,
D'Antone Salvatore,
D'Amore Alberto,
Spagnoli Gloria
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
macromolecular symposia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.257
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-3900
pISSN - 1022-1360
DOI - 10.1002/1521-3900(200203)180:1<257::aid-masy257>3.0.co;2-i
Subject(s) - glycolic acid , ethylene glycol , plga , lactic acid , copolymer , thermogravimetry , polymer chemistry , caprolactone , materials science , thermal stability , degradation (telecommunications) , diol , nuclear chemistry , chemical engineering , chemistry , organic chemistry , polymer , inorganic chemistry , nanoparticle , telecommunications , genetics , bacteria , computer science , engineering , biology , nanotechnology
Thermodegradative investigations of two classes of multi‐block copolymers containing poly(D,L‐lactic‐glycolic acid) (PLGA) and either poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) or poly(ϵ‐caprolactone) diol‐terminated (PCDT) segments were performed. In particular, the influence of the type and length of the segments as well as of the molar ratio between the D,L‐lactic acid (LA) and glycolic acid (GA) residues was investigated at 180°C in air by viscometry, FT‐IR analysis and isothermal thermogravimetry. The thermal oxidative degradation of these materials is largely affected by the LA/GA ratio, a higher LA content generally imparting higher stability. The FT‐IR analysis suggests that, depending on the composition of the PLGA segments, degradative processes are triggered which can lead to a preferential degradation of the blocks.