Preparation and properties of PLCL/OM-Laponite materials with potential applications in orthopedic bandage

Poly(l-lactide-co-caprolactone) (PLCL) is the polymeric material with good biodegradability and biocompatible properties, but it is insufficient in strength properties that the pure PLCL is performed as orthopedic bandage. The PLCL has been blended with the laponite which is modified by cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) to prepare composited bandage splines. The organic-modified laponite (OM-laponite) results of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetry analysis (TG) indicate that the laponite was successfully grafted with CTAB and the thermal stability was improved with increasing CTAB. The mechanical properties reveal that elongation at break strengthen with the increasing OM-laponite. When the content of OM-laponite is 2.0 %, the elongation at break and tensile strength of composited spline are superior to the medical orthopedic bandage. The results of thermal stability show that it was helpful to improve the crystallization properties of PLCL with the addition of OM-laponite. The water contact angle results demonstrate that the hydrophilicity is enhanced and is beneficial to cell adhesion. The results of cell experiment illustrate that the composite materials have a certain effect on cell proliferation when the content of OM-laponite is less than 2 %. Compared with the medical orthopedic bandage, it is satisfied with the application requirements.