• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.10
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• pp.2320-2327
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• 2020

The extreme hydrophobicity of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) hinders bone-tissue integration, thus limiting the use of ePTFE in medical implant applications. To improve the potential of ePTFE as a biomaterial, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) was grafted onto the ePTFE surface using the gamma irradiation technique. The characteristics of the grafted ePTFE were successfully evaluated using attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM)/energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Under the tensile test, the modified ePTFE was found to be more brittle and rigid than the untreated sample. In addition, the grafted ePTFE was less hydrophobic with a higher percentage of water uptake compared to the untreated ePTFE. The protein adsorption test showed that grafted ePTFE could adsorb protein, which was denoted by the presence of N peaks in the XPS analysis. Moreover, the formation of the globular mineral on the grafted ePTFE surface was successfully visualized using the FESEM analysis, with a ratio of 1.94 for Ca:P minerals by the EDX. To summarize, the capability of the modified ePTFE to show protein adsorption and mineralization indicates the improvement of the polymer properties, and it can potentially be used as a biomaterial for implant application.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.256-262
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of surface modification on the fibrovascular ingrowth into porous polyethylene (PE) spheres ($Medpor^{(R)}$), which are used as an anophthalmic socket implant material. To make the inert, hydrophobic PE surface hydrophilic, nonporous PE film and porous PE spheres were subjected to plasma treatment and in situ acrylic acid (AA) grafting followed by the immobilization of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptide. The surface-modified PE was evaluated by performing surface analyses and tested for fibroblast adhesion and proliferation in vitro. In addition, the porous PE implants were inserted for up to 3 weeks in the abdominal area of rabbits and, after their retrieval, the level of fibrovascular ingrowth within the implants was assessed in vivo. As compared to the unmodified PE control, a significant increase in the hydrophilicity of both the AA-grafted (PE-g-PAA) and RGD-immobilized PE (PE-g-RGD) was observed by the measurement of the water contact angle. The cell adhesion at 72 h was most notable in the PE-g-RGD, followed by the PE-g-PAA and PE control. There was no significant difference between the two modified surfaces. When the cross-sectional area of tissue ingrowth in vivo was evaluated, the area of fibrovascularization was the largest with PE-g-RGD. The results of immunostaining of CD31, which is indicative of the degree of vascularization, showed that the RGD-immobilized surface could elicit more widespread fibrovascularization within the porous PE implants. This work demonstrates that the present surface modifications, viz. hydrophilic AA grafting and RGD peptide immobilization, can be very effective in inducing fibrovascular ingrowth into porous PE implants.

• Journal of Radiation Industry
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.365-370
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• 2011

Electrospun nanofibers prepared with synthetic biodegradable polymer have some limitations in regulating adhesion, proliferation, and spreading of cells because of their surface hydrophobicity and absence of cell-interaction. In this study, we functionalized the electrospun poly(L-lactide-co-${\varepsilon}$-caprolactone) (PLCL) nanofibers with acrylic acid (AAc) to modulate their surface hydrophilicity using electron-beam irradiation method and then measured grafting ratio of AAc, water contact angle, and ATR-FTIR of AAc-grafted nanofibers. A grafting ratio of AAc on the nanofibers was increased as irradiation dose and AAc concentration were increased. AAc-grafted nanofibers also have higher wettability than non-modified nanofibers. In conclusion, those surface-modified nanofibers may be an essential candidate to regulate cell attachment in tissue engineering applications.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.46-52
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• 2000

Miscibility improvement between polypropylene(PP) and ethylene-propylene-diene-terpolymer (EPDM) was studied by introducing specific interaction into both polymers. PP was modified by grafting maleic anhydride(MAH) onto backbone, leading to MAH-grafted PP(PP-g-MAH). Sulfonated EPDM ionomer neutralized with bivalent zinc cation(ZnSEPDM) was used as one component. The blends of PP-g-MAH and ZnSEPDM were prepared at $200^{\circ}C$ in Brabender Roller Mixer. Fourier transform-infrared(FT-IR) spectroscopic and dynamic mechanical studies have been performed to investigate the miscibility. FT-IR spectral peak corresponding to carbonyl group in PP-g-MAH and that to sulfonate group in ZnSEPDM were shifted to lower and higher frequency with increasing ZnSEPDM content, respectively, in the blends. Glass transition temperature of ZnSEPDM was increased up to 70wt.% of ZnSEPDM, and again decreased above 70wt.%. It can be concluded from the shift of FT-IR characteristic peaks and the changes of glass transition temperatures that the miscibility between PP and EPDM was improved via introducing specific interaction, i.e., dipole-ion interaction.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.167-175
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• 2005

This review explores recent works involving the use of the self-assembled nanoparticles of bile acid-modified glycol chitosans (BGCs) as a new drug carrier for cancer therapy. BGC nanoparticles were produced by chemically grafting different bile acids through the use of l-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-carbodiimide (EDC). The precise control of the size, structure, and hydrophobicity of the various BGC nanoparticles could be achieved by grafting different amounts of bile acids. The BGC nanoparticles so produced formed nanoparticles ranging in size from 210 to 850 nm in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS, pH=7.4), which exhibited substantially lower critical aggregation concentrations (0.038-0.260 mg/mL) than those of other low-molecular-weight surfactants, indicating that they possess high thermodynamic stability. The SOC nanoparticles could encapsulate small molecular peptides and hydrophobic anticancer drugs with a high loading efficiency and release them in a sustained manner. This review also highlights the biodistribution of the BGC nanoparticles, in order to demonstrate their accumulation in the tumor tissue, by utilizing the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect. The different approaches used to optimize the delivery of drugs to treat cancer are also described in the last section.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.525-530
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• 2012

In this study, silane-crosslinked organic/inorganic composite membranes were prepared by simultaneous irradiation grafting of binary monomer mixtures (styrene and 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TMSPM)) with various compositions onto a poly(ethylene-alt-tetraethylene) (ETFE) film and followed by sol-gel processing and sulfonation to provide a silane-crosslinked structure and a proton conducting ability, respectively. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) were utilized to confirm the crosslinking of ETFE-g-PS/PTMSPM films. The prepared membranes with similar ion exchange capacity but a different TMSPM content were selected and their membrane properties were compared. The ETFE-g-PSSA/PTMSPM membranes were characterized by water uptake, dimensional stability, and proton conductivity after sulfonation. The membrane electrode assemblies (MEA) of the prepared membranes were fabricated and their single cell performances were measured.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.111-116
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• 2012

A functionalization of mesoporous materials with organosilane was carried out via a post-synthesis grafting method and $(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$/methylaluminoxane (MAO) as subsequently immobilized on the functionalized mesoporous materials for ethylene polymerization. Organosilanes having amine, cyano or imidazoline group such as $N$-[(3-trimethoxysilyl)propyl]ethylenediamine (2NS), 4-(triethoxysilyl)butyronitrile (1NCy), 1-(3-triethoxysilylpropyl)-2-imidazoline (2NIm) were used for the surface functionalization of mesoporous materials. In the SBA-15/2NS/$(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$ catalyst preparation, the amount of MAO in feed increased with an decrease in the Zr content of the supported catalyst, and Al content in the supported catalyst increased. The ethylene homopolymerization activity of SBA-15/2NS/$(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$ dramatically increased as the amount of MAO in feed increased. Furthermore, when the immobilization time was 6 hrs, SBA-15/2NS/$(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$ showed the highest activity. The activities of supported 2NS-, 1NCy-, 2NIm-functionalized catalysts decreased in the following order, SBA-15/2NS/ > SBA-15/2NIm/ > SBA-15/1NCy/$(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$. 2NS and 2NIm which have two amine groups per silane molecule were shown to interact with $(n-BuCp)_2ZrCl_2$ strongly compared to 1NCy which has one amine group. Thus, the activities increased with an increase in the nitrogen and the Zr content of the supported catalysts.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.93-103
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• 2005

In this study, surface treatment of the elastomeric matrix was investigated to develop a substituting material for steel dynamic damper of automobile. The key technology is to get ultra high density elastomeric compound in order to substitute steel dynamic damper. The optimum matrix material(chloroprene rubber) and filler(metal powder) were selected for this. The several properties of elastomeric compound were examined. According to the results, the $t_{s2}$ of filled elastomeric compound was decreased with increasing the filler loading whereas the $t_{90}$ was increased. Also, tensile strength and rebound resilience were decreased with filler loading. To solve the problem of high filler loading, the photo grafting technique was employed on elastomeric matrix. The degree of grafting was determined by FTIR-ATR. Also, the filler surface was modified by chemical etching and the surface morphology was examine by SEM. After chemical treatment of filler, the particle size analyzer was used to examined the particle size, size distribution, and morphology of the modified filler.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.275-282
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• 2021

High-molecular-weight maleic anhydride-grafted polylactic acids (HMMA-g-PLA) compatibilizers were prepared by melt grafting in a twin screw extruder using di(tert-butyl-perxoyisopropyl)benzene (PK-14; as initiator), maleic anhydride (MA), and divinylbenzene (DVB). To determine the properties of the prepared HMMA-g-PLA compatibilizers, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), Melt index (MI), and back-titration analyses were performed. On increasing DVB concentration, grafting yield of HMMA-g-PLA increased but MI decreased because 𝛽-scission of PLA was restrained by the DVB, and thus, the molecular weight of HMMA-g-PLA increased. PLA-based wood-plastic composites (WPCs) were prepared using HMMA-g-PLA by melt blending through a single screw extruder. The flexural and impact strengths of WPCs compatibilized with HMMA-g-PLA were greater than those of WPCs produced without HMMA-g-PLA. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies indicated that increased mechanical properties were caused by excellent interfacial adhesion between PLA and wood fibers due to the addition of HMMA-g-PLA. However, rather high contents of HMMA-g-PLA reduced the mechanical properties of WPCs. We believe that lower molecular-weight of HMMA-g-PLA added as an compatibilizer, compared with PLA polymer, caused the reduction of mechanical properties.

• Journal of Sericultural and Entomological Science
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.49-56
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• 1992

Treatment of vinyl monomers onto silk fiber modifies the properties of the original silk fiber considerably. This field has been the subject of investigation by many workers using chemical and radiation initiation. Many studies on the reaction conditions, polymerization mechanism, physical properties and practical performances of methacrylamide-treated silk fiber have been continued. However, the polymerization mechanism has not been clearly revealed yet and this remains ambiguously whether the grafting is formed on fiber or not. In general, it has been accepted that free radicals were formed and vinyl monomers were polymerized in silk fibroin by graft polymerization mechanism, while active sties were varied by the types of monomer and initiator as well as by the reaction conditions. On the other hand, there is another argument on polymerization mechanism, in which monomers are polymerized and impregnated in the internal side of the fiber by homopolymerization. Though a large number of analytical methods are used to examine the polymerization mechanism of methacrylamide-treated silk fiber, the results on the basis of thermal analysis are merely reported in this paper. In differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, the thermal decomposition behaviors of the methacrylamie-treated silk fibers were determined and compared to those of the controlled silk fibers. DSC curves obtained from the methacrylamide-treated silk fibers showed double peaks at around 290$^{\circ}C$ (A peak) and 320$^{\circ}C$ (B peak) which are attributed to the thermal decomposition of the methacrylamide polymer and silk fibroin fiber, respectively. The temperature of A and B peak shifted to higher value with the increase of add-on. Also, the moisture regain of the treated silk fibers increased with add-on.