Improvements of Tensile Properties and Durability of Chitosan Fiber Using Methanol Drying Treatment

摘要

Chitosan flber is a biodegradable and biocompatible natural polymer that is potentially suitable as absorbable suture. One approach to improve mechanical properties of chitosan flber is application of chemical modiflcation. This study aims to improve the tensile properties and durability of chitosan flbers, in terms of biodegradation resistance, at various deacetylation degrees using methanol drying treatment. The flbers were made of chitosan with deacetylation degrees (%DD) of 67.4% and 70.6% using wet spinning method and dried using aq. 30% methanol for 4 h. Examinations were carried out by means of X-ray diffraction, physical properties characterization, tensile test and in vitro degradation test. Results show that methanol drying treatment could decrease flber’s diameter, while increasing flber’s density, tensile strength, and biodegradation resistance, but did not always increase flber’s maximum elongation. The expected higher elongation was achieved for 70.6%DD flber, however the more signiflcant improvement of durability was obtained for 67.4%DD flber. Methanol drying affected those flbers’ characteristics due to the increase in degree of crystallinity as a result of chitosan flber’s chemical structure change from hydrated to anhydrous structure. According to the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) standard, the flbers produced could be categorized as absorbable suture number 0 and 1.