Fabrication and Characterization of Fibrous Polycaprolactone Blended with Natural Green Tea Extracts Using Dual Solvent Systems

Abstract

Nanofibrous dressings serve as an impeccable candidate in the management of wounds. Nanofibrous composites composed of polycaprolactone (PCL) and green tea using dual solvent systems at different ratios were fabricated through electrospinning. Pure PCL electrospun fibers along with composites were characterized by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), wettability, water uptake analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). SEM indicated that fibrous morphology and the diameter of PCL/green tea were smaller for chloroform/dimethylformamide (DMF) (601 nm) and acetone/DMF (896 nm) than the pure PCL (673 nm and 1,104 nm for chloroform/DMF and acetone/DMF, respectively). Wettability of the fabricated composites was increased, and pure PCL fibers were slightly more hydrophobic (100°) than PCL/green tea (94°). Water uptake of the composites was enhanced compared with PCL significantly in acetone/DMF. The PCL/green tea nanofibrous wound dressing with enhanced physicochemical properties serves as an indispensable candidate for wound healing applications.

Keywords

• nanofibrous
• composite
• electrospinning
• green tea
• wound healing
• water uptake