Solution Blow Spun Poly(ethylene oxide)/Poly--caprolactone System: Properties and Dissolution in Water

In the present work, fibrous materials based on poly(ethyleneoxide)(PEO), poly-& epsilon;-caprolactone (PCL), and a mixture of them (PEO/PCL)have been prepared by solution blow spinning (SBS). The rotation speedof the collector of the SBS device (500, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, and3000 rpm) has been chosen as the processing variable to modify thematerials' morphologies. The structures of the polymer systemshave been evaluated by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transformedinfrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, and the morphologieshave been inspected by field emission scanning electron microscopy,while thermal and mechanical behaviors have been studied by differentialscanning calorimetry and tensile tests, respectively. Dissolutionin water has been monitored by optical microscopy and video recording.As a proof of concept, the capacities of the systems under study torelease a model drug have been tested by loading the materials withsilver(I) sulfadiazine (SSD) and then immersing them in a buffer solutionand monitoring the process through the intrinsic fluorescence of SSD.Our results indicate that there are no changes at the molecular level,but there is a change in the morphology of the material as a functionof the rotation speed of the collector. These morphological variations,together with the composition of the system, affect the mechanicalbehavior of the material, the dissolution process in water, and thedrug release. These factors are relevant if the blow spun materialis intended for biomedical applications in which an active agent hasto be released in a controlled manner.