Modified Poly-epsilon-caprolactone (PCL) with Phosphorus Containing Compounds for Biomineralization

Biodegradable polymers (e.g. poly-epsilon-caprolactone, PCL) have been studied largely for tissue engineering applications. The aim of this study was to evaluate the composite fabrication technique on PCL modified with the phosphate salts (i.e. NaH2PO4, Na2HPO4, KH2PO4, or K2HPO4) as well as to determine the compression strengths thereof. The chemical structure and morphology of composites were analyzed using FTIR and SEM/EDX. The influence of a plain phosphate salt in different quantities on the hydrophilic properties of PCL was evaluated by measuring the water contact angle. The results of this study indicated that the addition of phosphate salts led to an improvement in compression strength of PCL composites. According to the results of preliminary biomimetic mineralization, Na2HPO4 seems to increase the bioactivity of PCL.