International Journal of Polymer Science
Volume 2017, Article ID 5651398, 11 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/5651398
Development and Characterization of Photoinduced Acrylamide-Grafted Polylactide Films for Biomedical Applications
School of Biochemical Engineering and Technology, Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology (SIIT), Thammasat University, Pathum Thani 12121, Thailand
Correspondence should be addressed to Pakorn Opaprakasit; ht.ca.ut.tiis@nrokap
Received 24 May 2017; Revised 18 July 2017; Accepted 8 August 2017; Published 12 December 2017
Academic Editor: Cornelia Vasile
Copyright © 2017 Mijanur Rahman et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Surface grafting of biodegradable/biocompatible polylactide (PLA) films by a UV-assisted reaction has been developed by employing a hydrophilic acrylamide (Am) monomer, an N,N′-methylenebisacrylamide (MBAm) cross-linker, and a camphorquinone (CQ)/N,N′-dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate (DMAEMA) photoinitiator/coinitiator system. The accomplishment of the process is confirmed by FTIR and XPS analyses. Physicochemical changes of the grafted PLA films are evaluated in terms of chemical structures, radiation-induced degradation followed by crystallization, morphology, thermal properties, and mechanical behavior. The results reveal that a low degree of PLA degradation through chain scission is observed in both blank and grafted PLA films. This generates more polar chain ends that can further induce crystallization. Results from contact angle measurements indicate that the grafted films have higher hydrophilicity and pH-responsive behavior. The incorporation of PAm on the film’s surface and the induced crystallization lead to improvements in certain aspects of mechanical properties of the films. The materials have high potential for use in biomedical and environmental applications, such as cell culture substrates or scaffolds or pH-sensitive absorbents.