Abstract
Almost general poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) films were prepared by the processing of a PVA solution. For the first time, a novel poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) film was prepared by the saponification of a poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc) film in a heterogenous medium. Under the same saponification conditions, the influence of saponification time on the degree of saponification (DS) was studied for the preparation of the saponified PVA film, and it was found that the DS varied with time. Optical microscopy was used to confirm the characteristics and surface morphology of the saponified PVA film, revealing unusual black globules in the film structure. The contact angle of the films was measured to study the surface properties, and the results showed that the saponified PVA film had a higher contact angle than the general PVA film. To confirm the transformation of the PVAc film to the PVA film, 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction measurements, differential scanning calorimetry, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy were employed.
Highlights
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)—a polymer prepared by the saponification of poly(vinyl acetate)(PVAc)—has attracted considerable interest because of its many attractive properties, and is widely used in traditional industries, including food, pharmaceuticals, and biomedicine
The saponified poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) film had a higher contact angle compared to the general PVA film. This shows that the contact angle of saponified PVAc is affected by the roughness of the film surface rather than the hydrophilicity of the saponified PVAc, and that proves that the surface roughness of the saponified PVAc film has changed
PVA film is prepared by solution casting using PVA solution
Summary
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)—a polymer prepared by the saponification of poly(vinyl acetate). PVA has gained increasing attention from researchers for biomedical applications such as eye drops, contact lenses, tissue adhesion barriers, and artificial cartilage, owing to its exclusive properties including biocompatibility, hydrophilicity, nontoxicity, and biodegradability [1]. A simple and easy preparation of PVA/PVAc microspheres with a skin/core structure, involving suspension polymerization and heterogeneous surface saponification, was reported by Lee et al [9]. We established a novel and simplistic technique to prepare PVA film from PVAc film, and a reasonable clarification was provided for the black globules appearing in the saponified film structure
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