Glycerol-silicone adhesives with excellent fluid handling and mechanical properties for advanced wound care applications

Abstract

Adhesives with improved fluid handling and stable mechanical properties are gaining increasing interest in wound care due to improved wound healing conditions. Silicone adhesives possess in general excellent oxygen permeability but poor liquid water absorption and transport due to their inherent hydrophobicity. Herein, we present a novel glycerol-silicone hybrid adhesive with improved fluid handling properties as a result of the incorporation of relatively monodisperse glycerol droplets distributed homogenously throughout the silicone adhesive. The discrete glycerol droplets promote water absorption when the adhesive comes into contact with an aqueous phase due to the hygroscopic nature of glycerol. Additionally, the adhesives' performance, evaluated in terms of mechanical properties, peel, and tack, is shown not to be compromised by presence of the glycerol droplets, mainly due to the so-called solid stiffening effect introduced by their interfacial energies.