Premium
Preparation of porous poly( L ‐lactic acid)‐ co ‐(trimethylene‐carbonate) structures using supercritical CO 2 as antisolvent and as foaming agent
Author(s) -
Baklavaridis Apostolos,
Tsivintzelis Ioannis,
Zuburtikudis Ioannis,
Panayiotou Costas
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
polymer engineering and science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1548-2634
pISSN - 0032-3888
DOI - 10.1002/pen.24478
Subject(s) - materials science , supercritical fluid , porosity , chemical engineering , polymer , phase inversion , ethylene carbonate , phase (matter) , composite material , organic chemistry , membrane , chemistry , biochemistry , engineering , electrode , electrolyte
In this work, porous structures of poly( l ‐lactic acid)‐ co ‐(tri‐methylene‐carbonate) (PLLA‐ co ‐TMC) were successfully fabricated using two experimental methods, that is, using supercritical CO 2 as antisolvent and as foaming agent through the pressure induced phase separation technique. Considering the phase inversion method, the effect of the initial polymer concentration of the solution, pressure, and temperature on the morphology of the final porous structure (pore size, porosity, and cell density) was investigated. The L–L demixing process was suggested as the dominant mechanism for the phase separation and pore production. The temperature window, for which PLLA‐ co ‐TMC porous structures are successfully produced using the pressure induced phase separation technique, was determined at 150 and 210 bar. The effect of temperature on the final porous structure was investigated. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 57:1005–1015, 2017. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers