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. 2019 Mar 12;11(3):475.
doi: 10.3390/polym11030475.

Analysis of the Process Parameters for Obtaining a Stable Electrospun Process in Different Composition Epoxy/Poly ε-Caprolactone Blends with Shape Memory Properties

Alvaro Iregui  1 , Lourdes Irusta  2 , Loli Martin  3 , Alba González  4
Affiliations

Analysis of the Process Parameters for Obtaining a Stable Electrospun Process in Different Composition Epoxy/Poly ε-Caprolactone Blends with Shape Memory Properties

Alvaro Iregui et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

In this work Poly ε-caprolactone (PCL)/ Diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) blends were electrospun and the obtained mats were UV cured to achieve shape memory properties. In the majority of studies, when blends with different compositions are electrospun, the process variables such as voltage or flow rate are fixed independently of the composition and consequently the quality of the fibers is not optimized in all of the range studied. In the present work, using the design of experiments methodology, flow rate and voltage required to obtain a stable process were evaluated as responses in addition to the fiber diameter and shape memory properties. The results showed that the solution concentration and amount of PCL played an important role in the voltage and flow rate. For the shape memory properties excellent values were achieved and no composition dependence was observed. In the case of fiber diameter, similar results to previous works were observed.

Keywords: design of experiments; electrospinning; epoxy photocuring; polycaprolactone; shape memory polymers.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Measured vs predicted voltage, fitted multivariable line (solid) and 95% confidence curves (dotted).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Measured vs predicted flow rate, fitted multivariable line (solid) and 95% confidence curves (dotted).
Figure 3
Figure 3
ATR spectra for a central point sample before and after curing.
Figure 4
Figure 4
DSC thermogram (second scan) for a central point sample before and after the curing.
Scheme 1
Scheme 1
Transesterification reaction between hydroxyl groups of the epoxy and the PCL.
Figure 5
Figure 5
SEM images of the different mats. All scale bars represent 50 µm.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Diameter distribution for extreme conditions (- - -) and (+++).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Measured vs predicted diameter, fitted multivariable line (solid) and 95% confidence curves (dotted).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Photographs of the manual shape memory test showing (A) the initial longitude, (B) the programming shape, (C) the fixed shape and (D) the recovered sample.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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