Abstract
Triple‐component nanocomposites for improved sustained drug release profiles are successfully fabricated through a modified coaxial electrospinning process, in which only organic solvent N,N‐dimethylacetamide was used as sheath fluid. Using polyacrylonitrile (PAN) as filament‐forming matrix, ibuprofen (IBU) as functional ingredient, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as the additional component, the IBU/PVP/PAN triple‐component nanocomposites had uniform structure and an average diameter of 620 ± 120 nm and 650 ± 120 nm when the contents of PVP in the nanofibers were 10.5% and 22.7%, respectively. The optimal sheath‐to‐core flow rate ratio was 0.11 under a total sheath and core fluid flow rate of 1.0 mL/h. Compared with the IBU/PAN composite nanofibers, the triple‐component composites could release 92.1% and 97.8% of the contained IBU, significantly larger than a value of 73.4% from the former. The inclusion of PVP in the IBU/PAN could effectively avoid the entrapment of IBU in the insoluble PAN molecules, facilitating the in vitro release of IBU. The modified coaxial process and the resulted multiple component nanocomposites would provide new way for developing novel drug sustained materials and transdermal drug delivery systems.
Highlights
Electrospinning is a one-step straightforward nanofiber fabrication process, in which electrical energy is exploited to dry and solidify microfluid jets directly [1,2,3,4]
The critical voltage applied to a fluid to initiate Taylor cone formation and the straight thinning jet (Vc) have a close relationship with the diameter of sheath part of the concentric spinneret [12], as indicated by where Vc is the critical voltage for a jet emanating from the meniscus tip, d is the electrode separation, ε is the permittivity, γ is the surface tension, and R is the principal curvature of the liquid meniscus
The homemade spinneret used in the study has an outer and inner diameter of 1.2 and 0.3 mm, respectively (Figure 1(b)), facilitating the coaxial electrospinning process
Summary
Electrospinning is a one-step straightforward nanofiber fabrication process, in which electrical energy is exploited to dry and solidify microfluid jets directly [1,2,3,4]. It has been broadly reported that drug-loaded nanofibers are fabricated through electrospinning of a codissolving solution of a guest pharmaceutical active ingredient and a host polymer For these nanofibers, the initial burst effect is inevitable because of the large nanofiber surfaces, drug distribution on the nanofiber surfaces, and the amorphous status of the drug. A modified coaxial electrospinning process, characterized by an unspinnable solvent as sheath fluid, was exploited to generate the triple-component nanocomposites This process has been used to realize several new possibilities, such as controlling the size of nanoparticles self-assembled from electrospun nanofibers, preparing ultrafine structures from concentrated polymer solutions previously thought unspinnable, improving systematically polymer nanofiber quality, and generating high quality carbon nanofiber precursors [12,13,14,15]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
