Biodegradable Polymers Flashcards

Flashcards about Biodegradable Polymers

What are Biodegradable Polymers?

Polymers that degrade after use into natural products like water and biomass.

What are the sources of biodegradable polymers?

Natural and synthetic polymers.

What process breaks down biodegradable polymers?

Bacterial decomposition

What are the common byproducts of biodegradable polymer breakdown?

Gases (CO2, N2), water, biomass, and inorganic salts

What functional groups largely constitute biodegradable polymers?

Ester, amide, and ether functional groups.

How are biodegradable polymers often synthesized?

Condensation reactions, ring opening polymerization, and metal catalysts.

What are the advantages of biodegradable polymers?

Easy to recycle, less energy consumption, reduction of waste, lower petroleum consumption.

What is a key benefit of using Biodegradable polymers?

Composability

What environmental effect is reduced by using biodegradable polymers?

Reduction of emission of Green House Gas level

What are the desired properties of biodegradable polymers?

Stable and durable for their application, non-toxic, good mechanical integrity, controlled degradation rates.

What type of backbones do biodegradable polymers have?

Strong carbon backbones.

Why is crystallinity often low in biodegradable polymers?

It inhibits access to end groups

What are two key methods for synthesizing Poly lactic acid?

Condensation and Ring opening polymerization.

What is the monomer used for PLA synthesis?

Lactic acid

What are the key properties of Polylactic acid?

Good bio-compatibility and high-strength.

What is the structure of the D-isomer of PLA?

Crystalline

What is the structure of the L-isomer of PLA?

Amorphous

Which isomer of PLA degrades faster?

The L-isomer

What are the applications of Polylactic acid?

Bio-plastics for packing food and disposable tableware.

What are some uses of polylactic acid?

Medical implants, food packing, and compostable packing.

What are the biomedical applications of Poly lactic acid?

Tissue engineering, cardiovascular implants, drug carriers.

In what forms is PLA used as medical implants?

Anchors, screws, plates, pins, rods, and mesh.

What properties make PLA important for biomedical applications?

Biocompatibility, biodegradability, mechanical strength and process ability.

What is one application of biodegradable polymers in vascular delivery?

Coronary Stents

What area of surgery can biodegradable polymers be used in?

Dental Surgery

Give an example of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials.

Corneal tissue engineering

Name another example of tissue engineering using polymeric biomaterials

Skin tissue engineering

Provide one more example of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials?

Bone tissue engineering

Name yet another type of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials

Cardiac tissue engineering

Besides tissue engineering, name another biomedical application of Polymeric Biomaterials.

Drug delivery systems

What are Biodegradable Polymers?

Biodegradable polymers are polymers that, after being used, can be decomposed by microorganisms, bacteria, fungi, and algae into natural products such as water, carbon dioxide, biomass, and inorganic salts under specific environmental conditions (e.g., composting, soil, aquatic environments).

What are the sources of biodegradable polymers?

Biodegradable polymers can be derived from both natural sources (e.g., polysaccharides like starch and cellulose, proteins like gelatin and collagen) and synthetic sources (e.g., polylactic acid (PLA), polycaprolactone (PCL), polybutylene succinate (PBS)).

What process breaks down biodegradable polymers?

The primary process for breaking down biodegradable polymers is bacterial decomposition, although other microorganisms like fungi and algae also contribute. These organisms secrete enzymes that break down the polymer chains through hydrolysis, oxidation, or other chemical processes.

What are the common byproducts of biodegradable polymer breakdown?

The common byproducts include gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N2), water (H2O), biomass (organic matter consisting of dead plants and animal material), and inorganic salts (e.g., nitrates, phosphates, sulfates).

What functional groups largely constitute biodegradable polymers?

Ester groups (-COOR), amide groups (-CONH-), and ether groups (-O-) are commonly found in biodegradable polymers. These groups are susceptible to hydrolysis, which facilitates the breakdown of the polymer chains.

How are biodegradable polymers often synthesized?

Common synthesis methods include condensation reactions (releasing water or other small molecules), ring-opening polymerization (ROP) using cyclic monomers, and reactions using metal catalysts to control polymer properties and degradation rates.

What are the advantages of biodegradable polymers?

Advantages include easier recycling, reduced energy consumption during production, reduction of waste accumulation in landfills, and lower petroleum consumption as some can be derived from renewable resources.

What is a key benefit of using Biodegradable polymers?

Composability is a key benefit, meaning these polymers can break down in compost environments, enriching the soil without leaving harmful residues.

What environmental effect is reduced by using biodegradable polymers?

The use of biodegradable polymers contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by decreasing the reliance on fossil fuels and reducing methane emissions from landfills.

What are the desired properties of biodegradable polymers?

Desired properties include stability and durability for their intended application, non-toxicity to the environment and living organisms, good mechanical integrity to withstand stress, and controlled degradation rates that match the application requirements.

What type of backbones do biodegradable polymers have?

They typically have strong carbon backbones to provide structural integrity, similar to conventional polymers, but with linkages that can be cleaved by enzymatic or hydrolytic action.

Why is crystallinity often low in biodegradable polymers?

High crystallinity can inhibit access to end groups and reduce water penetration, thus slowing down the degradation process. Therefore, many biodegradable polymers are designed to have lower crystallinity to promote faster degradation.

What are two key methods for synthesizing Poly lactic acid?

Poly lactic acid (PLA) can be synthesized through condensation polymerization of lactic acid monomers or ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of lactide, a cyclic dimer of lactic acid.

What is the monomer used for PLA synthesis?

The monomer used for PLA synthesis is lactic acid, which has two optical isomers: L-lactic acid and D-lactic acid.

What are the key properties of Polylactic acid?

PLA has good biocompatibility, high strength, high modulus, and can be processed using various methods such as extrusion, injection molding, and film casting.

What is the structure of the D-isomer of PLA?

The D-isomer of PLA tends to disrupt the polymer chain's regularity, leading to a less crystalline structure. High content of D-isomer results in an amorphous structure.

What is the structure of the L-isomer of PLA?

The L-isomer of PLA allows for a more ordered arrangement of polymer chains, resulting in a semi-crystalline structure. High content of L-isomer leads to increased crystallinity.

Which isomer of PLA degrades faster?

The L-isomer of PLA typically degrades faster due to its higher crystallinity allowing for increased water penetration and enzymatic attack.

What are the applications of Polylactic acid?

PLA is used in bio-plastics for packing food, disposable tableware, agricultural films, and textile fibers. It is also utilized in 3D printing filaments and as a sustainable alternative to traditional plastics.

What are some uses of polylactic acid?

Common uses include medical implants (sutures, screws, and drug delivery systems), food packing (containers and films), and compostable packing (bags and containers). Also used in single use facemasks.

What are the biomedical applications of Poly lactic acid?

PLA is used in tissue engineering scaffolds, cardiovascular implants (stents), drug carriers (microparticles and nanoparticles), and surgical sutures due to its biocompatibility and controlled degradation.

In what forms is PLA used as medical implants?

PLA is fabricated into anchors, screws, plates, pins, rods, and mesh for orthopedic fixation, wound closure, and guided tissue regeneration.

What properties make PLA important for biomedical applications?

Biocompatibility ensures minimal adverse reactions, biodegradability allows the implant to degrade over time, mechanical strength provides support, and process ability enables the creation of complex shapes.

What is one application of biodegradable polymers in vascular delivery?

Biodegradable polymers are used to create coronary stents that elute drugs to prevent restenosis. The polymer degrades over time, leaving only the healed vessel.

What area of surgery can biodegradable polymers be used in?

Biodegradable polymers are used in dental surgery for guided tissue regeneration membranes, resorbable sutures, and drug delivery systems to promote healing and tissue regeneration.

Give an example of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials.

In corneal tissue engineering, polymeric biomaterials such as collagen and synthetic polymers are used as scaffolds to support the growth of corneal cells for treating corneal damage and vision impairment.

Name another example of tissue engineering using polymeric biomaterials

In skin tissue engineering, polymeric biomaterials are used as scaffolds to create artificial skin grafts for treating burns, ulcers, and other skin defects.

Provide one more example of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials?

In bone tissue engineering, polymeric biomaterials, such as PLA and calcium phosphate composites, are used as scaffolds to promote bone regeneration in fracture healing and bone defect repair.

Name yet another type of tissue engineering that uses polymeric biomaterials

In cardiac tissue engineering, polymeric biomaterials are used to create patches or scaffolds to support the regeneration of damaged heart tissue after a heart attack or in cases of heart failure.

Besides tissue engineering, name another biomedical application of Polymeric Biomaterials.

Polymeric biomaterials are used in drug delivery systems to encapsulate and release therapeutic agents in a controlled manner, improving drug efficacy and reducing side