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Advanced composites for hard‐tissue engineering based on PCL/organic–inorganic hybrid fillers: From the design of 2D substrates to 3D rapid prototyped scaffolds
Author(s) -
Santis R.,
Gloria A.,
Russo T.,
D'Amora U.,
D'Antò V.,
Bollino F.,
Catauro M.,
Mollica F.,
Rengo S.,
Ambrosio L.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
polymer composites
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.577
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1548-0569
pISSN - 0272-8397
DOI - 10.1002/pc.22446
Subject(s) - materials science , composite material , caprolactone , modulus , composite number , porosity , tissue engineering , polymer , biomedical engineering , copolymer , medicine
The bioactivity of sol–gel synthesized poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL)/TiO 2 or poly(ε‐caprolactone)/ZrO 2 particles was already known. In designing innovative 2D composite substrates for hard‐tissue engineering, the possibility to embed PCL/TiO 2 or PCL/ZrO 2 hybrid fillers into a PCL matrix was previously proposed. In the present study, the potential of 3D fiber‐deposition technique to design morphologically controlled scaffolds consisting of PCL reinforced with PCL/TiO 2 or PCL/ZrO 2 hybrid fillers was demonstrated. Finite element analysis was initially carried out on 2D substrates to find a correlation between the previously obtained results from the small punch test and the Young's modulus of the materials, whilst mechanical and biological tests were suitably performed on rapid prototyped scaffolds to assess the effects of the inclusion of the hybrid fillers on the performances of the 3D porous structures. The role of the inclusion of the hybrid fillers in improving the compressive modulus (about 90 MPa) and the cell viability/proliferation was demonstrated. POLYM. COMPOS., 34:1413–1417, 2013. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers