Effect of solvents on the enzyme mediated degradation of copolymers

Banerjee, Aditi and Chatterjee, Kaushik and Madras, Giridhar (2015) Effect of solvents on the enzyme mediated degradation of copolymers. In: MATERIALS RESEARCH EXPRESS, 2 (9).

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Abstract

The biodegradation of polycaprolactone (PCL), polylactic acid (PLA), polyglycolide (PGA) and their copolymers, poly (lactide-co-glycolide) and poly (D, L-lactide-co-caprolactone) (PLCL) was investigated. The influence of different solvents on the degradation of these polymers at 37 degrees C in the presence of two different lipases namely Novozym 435 and the free lipase of porcine pancreas was investigated. The rate coefficients for the polymer degradation and enzyme deactivation were determined using continuous distribution kinetics. Among the homopolymers, the degradation of PGA was nearly an order of magnitude lower than that for PCL and PLA. The overall rate coefficients of the copolymers were higher than their respective homopolymers. Thus, PLCL degraded faster than either PCL or PLA. The degradation was highly dependent on the viscosity of the solvent used with the highest degradation observed in acetone. The degradation of the polymers in acetone was nearly twice that observed in dimethyl sulfoxide indicating that the degradation decreases with increase in the solvent viscosity. The degradation of the polymers in water-solvent mixtures indicated an optimal water content of 2.5 wt% of water.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	MATERIALS RESEARCH EXPRESS
Publisher:	IOP PUBLISHING LTD
Additional Information:	Copy right for this article belongs to the IOP PUBLISHING LTD, TEMPLE CIRCUS, TEMPLE WAY, BRISTOL BS1 6BE, ENGLAND
Keywords:	population balance equations; polymer degradation; distribution kinetics
Department/Centre:	Division of Mechanical Sciences > Chemical Engineering Division of Mechanical Sciences > Materials Engineering (formerly Metallurgy)
Date Deposited:	26 Mar 2016 05:41
Last Modified:	26 Mar 2016 05:41
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/53425

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