Polylactide Material Research Articles

Analytical, numerical, and experimental investigation of a Luneburg lens system for directional cloaking

In this study, the design of a directional cloaking based on the Luneburg lens system is proposed and its operating principle is experimentally verified. The cloaking concept is analytically investigated via geometrical optics and numerically realized with the help of the finite-difference time-domain method. In order to benefit from its unique focusing and/or collimating characteristics of light, the Luneburg lens is used. We show that by the proper combination of Luneburg lenses in an array form, incident light bypasses the region between junctions of the lenses, i.e., the "dark zone." Hence, direct interaction of an object with propagating light is prevented if one places the object to be cloaked inside that dark zone. This effect is used for hiding an object which is made of a perfectly electric conductor material. In order to design an implementable cloaking device, the Luneburg lens is discretized into a photonic crystal structure having gradually varying air cylindrical holes in a dielectric material by using Maxwell Garnett effective medium approximations. Experimental verifications of the designed cloaking structure are performed at microwave frequencies of around 8 GHz. The proposed structure is fabricated by three-dimensional printing of dielectric polylactide material and a brass metallic alloy is utilized in place of the perfectly electric conductor material in microwave experiments. Good agreement between numerical and experimental results is found.

Electron beam treatment of polylactide at elevated temperature in nitrogen atmosphere

Different irradiation temperatures (25, 80 and 170 °C) have been used to investigate the temperature dependence of electron beam (EB) induced cross-linking and degradation behavior of neat polylactide (PLA) without the use of any cross-linking agents. Free radicals were generated and the competing chain scission and cross-linking reactions were initiated when the PLA material was exposed by the EB treatment. The sol gel analysis showed that no gel occurred for an EB treatment at room temperature, whereas the maximum gel content (33%) appeared for the PLA modified at 80 °C with 200 kGy. The molar mass of control and EB modified PLA samples were studied by size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The results demonstrated that the weight average molar mass (Mw) decreased dramatically for EB treatments at 25 °C with increasing dose. In contrast, a significant enhancement of Mw was found for PLA after the EB treatment at 80 and 170 °C. In comparison to the EB treatment at 25 °C, the rheological analysis indicated a remarkably improved elasticity behavior of modified PLA, higher absolute values of complex viscosity and higher storage modulus at low frequencies for EB treatments at elevated temperature.

Directional invisibility by genetic optimization.

In this Letter, the design of a directional optical cloaking by a genetic algorithm is proposed and realized experimentally. A three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method is combined with the genetic optimization approach to generate the cloaking structure to directionally cloak a cylindrical object made of a perfect electrical conductor by suppressing the undesired scattered fields around the object. The optimization algorithm designs the permittivity distribution of the dielectric polylactide material to achieve an optical cloaking effect. Experimental verifications of the designed cloaking structure are performed at microwave frequencies, where the proposed structure is fabricated by 3D printing. The imperfect conformal mapping from a large-scale permittivity distribution and the compensation of the remaining scattering by a small-scale permittivity distribution are the basic physical mechanisms of the proposed optical cloaking.

Fabrication of Scratch Resistant Polylactide with Multilayered Shish-kebab Structure through Layer-Multiplying Coextrusion

Recent demands for preserving esthetics of polymer parts over the duration of their service life have necessitated a favorable scratch resistance of polymer surfaces. Herein, a layer-multiplying coextrusion process was chosen to prepare a type of scratch resistant polylactide (PLA) material containing multilayer-assembled shish-kebab structure. Their scratch behavior and potential mechanisms were investigated. It was demonstrated that the greatly improved mechanical strength and toughness following the formation of ordered and oriented crystalline structure in neat PLA played a significant role in improving the scratch performance, particularly the resistance to the formation of cracking. Since no foreign additives were required, the present work provided an economical and environmental-friendly strategy for fabricating scratch resistant polymers.

Sound absorption characteristic of micro-helix metamaterial by 3D printing

ABSTRACT We present the design of micro-helix metamaterial supporting high sound absorption characteristic by 3D printing. The sample structure which is fabricated out of polylactide (PLA) material, many micro-helix are arranged by periodic arrays on XY plane. Experiment measurement results show that different geometrical dimensions of helix vestibule and cavity depth have a great effect on sound absorption coefficient. Physical mechanism depends on the friction and viscosity between the air and the helix vestibule. This work shows great potential of micro-structure metamaterial in noise control applications require light weight and large rigid of sound absorption.

Development of Broadband LHCP Pyramidal Horn Antenna with Septum Gaussian Profile Polarizer for CP-SAR Sensor Onboard Microsatellite

Horn Antenna has many applications such as communication, radar, and standard reference antenna for measurement. In this research, we designed a pyramidal horn for a Circularly Polarized Synthetic Aperture Radar (CP-SAR) sensor onboard a microsatellite. We utilized a 3D printer with Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) technology for fast, low-cost, and low-weight production. Polylactide (PLA) material was used to construct 3D structures, and a copper conductive coating was painted on its surface. Gaussian distribution function was employed to create a septum polarizer profile. NPC-220 A with 1.6 thickness and 2.17 dielectric constant was used to make a microstrip monopole antenna and stripline feeding to feed the pyramidal horn to generate TE01 mode at one side of the waveguide. The design, parametric studies, and measurements are discussed in this paper. The designed antenna can achieve wide bandwidth 28% of 3 dB axial ratio, and more than 22% of s11 ≤ −10 dB in working frequency that is acceptable for CP-SAR requirement on the microsatellite.

Investigation of Non-Destructive Testing in Inner Cavity with Ant-Nest Structure Based on Positron Annihilation

The existing testing method could not accurately detect the defects in inner cavity with ant-nest structure in a part. The reasons are as follows: the shape of inner cavity is irregular, the distribution of wall thickness is uneven and the material composition is complex etc. A new testing method is proposed based on positron annihilation in this paper. The radionuclide solution is injected in inner cavity of the part and then produces positrons which would annihilate within 2 nanoseconds in the polylactide (PLA) material. The information of inner cavity is reflected by counting the γ photons produced by positron annihilation. The maximum likelihood estimation model (MLEM) with average compensation is established according to the detected γ photons. A 2D slice image sequence is obtained by order subset expectation maximization (OSEM) algorithm which solves the MLEM. The targets such as defects in the 2D slice image need to be enhanced by OTSU algorithm. A 3D image is reconstructed by the enhanced 2D slice image sequence which is used to the detection and location of the defects in inner cavity. Two experiments under different environment are conducted which aim at different ant-nest structure parts. The parts are made of different material and made by different manufacture process. A good testing result of the parts with complex shaped inner cavity could be obtained. The results would not change with the change of external temperature or magnetic field and the testing precision can reach to millimeter level.

Theoretical and experimental study of a circular imprint process for fabricating polylactide stents

This study presents the concept for a circular imprint process for polylactide (PLA) stent fabrication that can reduce processing time and costs compared to traditional processes. The properties of PLA were measured for the theoretical simulation of the PLA stent firstly. Two proposed simulation models were built to predict the filling rate of the PLA material in the circular imprint process by the finite volume method (FVM) and to comprehend the compressibility of the PLA stent using the finite element method (FEM). A specially designed circular mold and imprint system are employed to imprint the stent structure. Experimental results show a similar trend to the theoretical results for the circular imprint process under varying conditions. Moreover, a filling rate of up to 98.3% can be achieved, and the PLA stent, which had good material properties and compressibility, was fabricated successfully using the circular imprint system.

Отсутствие полной резорбции полилактидного материала в организме

Отсутствие полной резорбции полилактидного материала в организме

Crucial Differences in the Hydrolytic Degradation between Industrial Polylactide and Laboratory-Scale Poly(L-lactide)

The rate of degradation of large-scale synthesized polylactide (PLA) of industrial origin was compared with that of laboratory-scale synthesized poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) of similar molar mass. The structural discrepancy between the two material types resulted in a significant difference in degradation rate. Although the hydrolysis of industrial PLA was substantially faster than that of PLLA, the PLA material became less brittle and fragmented to a lesser extent during degradation. In addition, a comprehensive picture of the degradation of industrial PLA was obtained by subjecting different PLA materials to hydrolytic degradation at various temperatures and pH’s for up to 182 days. The surrounding environment had no effect on the degradation rate at physiological temperature, but the degradation was faster in water than in a phosphate buffer after prolonged degradation at temperatures above the Tg. The degree of crystallinity had a greater influence than the degradation environment on the rate of hydrolysis. For a future use of polylactide in applications where bulk plastics are generally used today, for example plastic packages, the appropriate PLA grade must be chosen based on the conditions prevailing in the degradation environment.

New Insights on the Strain-Induced Mesophase of Poly(d,l-lactide): In Situ WAXS and DSC Study of the Thermo-Mechanical Stability

This work deals with the study of the mesomorphic form or mesophase induced by tensile drawing from the amorphous state of a polylactide material containing 4 mol % of d-stereoisomer units. Investigations have been carried out over the draw temperature domain 45−90 °C, i.e. an interval spanning roughly ±20 °C about the glass transition temperature. In situ WAXS experiments during drawing, stress relaxation, and/or heating of stretched samples invariably showed the strain-induced occurrence of the mesophase as far as temperature did not exceed 70 °C. This seems to be the upper stability temperature of the mesophase identified in a previous study. DSC traces upon heating of drawn samples exhibit a post glass transition endothermic peak similar to the enthalpy relaxation phenomenon observed for aged polymers. The amplitude of this strain-induced endotherm proved to be strongly dependent on draw temperature and draw ratio. Draw ratio also appeared to strongly influence the temperature domain of cold crystalli...

Strain-Induced Molecular Ordering in Polylactide upon Uniaxial Stretching

This study deals with the tensile drawing behavior of a polylactide material containing 4% of d-stereoisomer units, in the amorphous state. The draw temperature domain spanned from the glass transition to the onset of thermal crystallization, namely 70−100 °C. The stress−strain curves exhibit a strain-hardening strongly sensitive to the draw temperature regarding both the onset and the slope of the phenomenon. A detailed structural investigation reveals that various strain-induced phase changes take place depending on the draw temperature. For Td = 70 °C, a mesomorphic form develops from the strain-oriented amorphous chains, starting at a strain level ε ≈ 130%. In the case Td = 90 °C, a well-defined crystalline phase grows beyond the strain ε ≈ 250%. In the midtemperature range, i.e. Td = 80 °C, both the mesomorphic and the crystalline phases are generated in parallel. In all cases, the final weight content of ordered phases at rupture was roughly 30%, irrespective of their form. The observed evolution with increasing draw temperature of the strain-induced structure from mesomorphic to crystalline is quite surprising with regard to the concomitant drop of the strain-hardening. Indeed, if the latter finding is consistent with the thermal activation of plasticity, it also means that the mesomorphic form is almost as much cohesive as the crystalline form in spite of its imperfect ordering. The occurrence of the mesomorphic form is specifically discussed in terms of both chain mobility and thermodynamic metastability.

Biocompatibility of Polylactides in the Middle Ear

To study the suitability of resorbable polylactides for reconstruction in middle ear surgery. Twenty-four chinchillas. Twenty chinchillas were operated on using 2 types of polylactides inserted into the middle ear and outer ear canal, 10 animals in each group. At 6 months, the animals were killed, and their temporal bones were removed for sectioning. Degree of inflammation, fibrosis, degradation of polylactide material, and new bone formation were assessed histologically. Polylactide implants caused only a mild local inflammation, with no difference between the 2 materials tested. Polylactide acid-based middle ear implants were successfully used in the reconstructive middle ear surgery. Resorption occurred without complications.

Improving the elasticity and cytophilicity of biodegradable polyurethane by changing chain extender

Two types of biodegradable polyurethanes (PUs) were synthesized from methylene di-p-phenyl-diisocyanate (MDI), polycaprolactone diol (PCL-diol), and chain extenders of either butanediol (BD) or 2,2'-(methylimino)diethanol (MIDE). The effects of two types of chain extenders on the degradation, mechanical properties, hydrophilicity, and cytophilicity of PUs were evaluated. In vitro degradation studies showed that PU containing MIDE has a higher degradation rate than PU synthesized using BD as a chain extender. Mechanical testing on dry and wet samples demonstrated that PU containing MIDE has a much higher elongation in the elastic region than PU containing BD. PU containing MIDE is more hydrophilic and retains more liquid during in vitro culture. Furthermore, preliminary cytocompatibility studies showed that both types of degradable PU are nontoxic, and fibroblasts adhere better and proliferate faster on MIDE containing PU than BD containing PU. To compare the cytocompatibility and degradation behaviors of the synthesized PU with existing FDA approved biocompatible material, polylactide (PLA), with a similar degradation rate, was used as negative control. Two types of PU were shown to have similar cytocompatibility and degradation behaviors as those of the PLA material. To verify the effectiveness of the cytotoxicity assay, latex was used as a positive control. Latex samples showed toxicity to cultured cells as expected. In conclusion, by changing the type of chain extender used during the synthesis of degradable PUs, the degradation rate, mechanical properties, hydrophilicity, and cytophilicity can be adjusted for different tissue engineering applications.

Morphology and properties of polylactide modified by thermal treatment, filling with layered silicates and plasticization

Polylactide (PLA) was modified physically by filling with inorganic additives—organomodified particles of clay, unmodified particles of clay as well as with a plasticizer—poly(ethylene glycol). The PLA-based systems were prepared by melt blending of PLA with other components. Combination of PLA with organomodified clay particles formed nanocomposite with intercalated nanostructure, while introducing microparticles led to microcomposite, respectively. The clay concentration was maintained at 3 wt% in the both systems. Additionally unfilled PLA, plasticized PLA and plasticized nanocomposite were prepared under the same blending conditions. For plasticization, 10 wt% of poly(ethylene glycol) was used. Two groups of the PLA samples and PLA-based systems featured by starting amorphous structure or semicrystalline structure were considered, respectively. The structure, thermal behavior, thermo-optical properties and dynamic mechanical response of the PLA-based systems were investigated and compared with unfilled PLA of the same thermo-mechanical history and with the neat (unprocessed) PLA. The influence of the composition and thermal treatment on the structure and physical properties of the considered samples was determined. The effect of aging on the structure and crystallization ability of the PLA material from its glassy amorphous state was evaluated as well. Temperature modulated differential scanning calorimetry, thermo-optical analysis, X-ray diffraction technique, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMTA) were used.