Mechanical behavior of transparent nanofibrillar cellulose-chitosan nanocomposite films in dry and wet conditions

Tongfei Wu; Ramin Farnood; Kevin O'Kelly; Biqiong Chen

doi:10.1016/j.jmbbm.2014.01.014

Mechanical behavior of transparent nanofibrillar cellulose-chitosan nanocomposite films in dry and wet conditions

J Mech Behav Biomed Mater. 2014 Apr:32:279-286. doi: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2014.01.014. Epub 2014 Jan 27.

Authors

Tongfei Wu¹, Ramin Farnood², Kevin O'Kelly³, Biqiong Chen⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK; Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, 200 College Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5S 3E5; Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland.
² Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, 200 College Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5S 3E5.
³ Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland.
⁴ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK. Electronic address: biqiong.chen@sheffield.ac.uk.

PMID: 24508714
DOI: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2014.01.014

Abstract

Transparent, biocompatible and biodegradable chitosan (CS) nanocomposite films reinforced with nanofibrillar cellulose (NFC) were prepared by solution casting. The effects of NFC content on the mechanical properties in dry and wet conditions were investigated. The incorporation of NFC significantly enhanced the mechanical properties, especially in wet conditions. The ultimate tensile strength and Young׳s modulus of chitosan were improved by 12 times and 30 times, respectively, for the nanocomposite containing 32wt% of NFC in wet conditions. The mechanism of the remarkable reinforcements was studied by analyzing the swelling behavior of NFC-CS nanocomposites. The mechanical properties of wet NFC-CS nanocomposite films matched well with those of human skin, which demonstrate potential for uses as artificial skin and wound dressings.

Keywords: Chitosan; Mechanical properties; Nanocomposites; Nanofibrillar cellulose.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Biocompatible Materials / chemistry*
Cellulose / chemistry*
Chitosan / chemistry*
Elastic Modulus
Humans
Mechanical Phenomena*
Nanofibers / chemistry*
Optical Phenomena*
Skin / cytology
Tensile Strength

Substances

Biocompatible Materials
Cellulose
Chitosan