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Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Synthesis of Soft Polysiloxane-urea Elastomers for Intraocular Lens Application
Published on: March 8, 2019
Synthesis and water-swelling of thermo-responsive poly(ester urethane)s containing poly(epsilon-caprolactone),
Xian Jun Loh1, Kian Boon Colin Sng, Jun Li
1Division of Bioengineering, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, 7 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore 117574, Singapore.
Abstract:
Thermo-responsive multiblock poly(ester urethane)s comprising poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL), poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), and poly(propylene glycol) (PPG) segments were synthesized. The copolymers were characterized by GPC, NMR, FTIR, XRD, DSC and TGA. Water-swelling analysis carried out at different temperatures revealed that the bulk hydrophilicity of the copolymers could be controlled either by adjusting the composition of the copolymer or by changing the temperature of the environment. These thermo-responsive copolymer films formed highly swollen hydrogel-like materials when soaked in cold water and shrank when soaked in warm water. The changes are reversible. The mechanical properties of the copolymer films were assessed by tensile strength measurement. These copolymers were ductile when compared to PCL homopolymers. Young's modulus and the stress at break increased with increasing PCL content, whereas the strain at break increased with increasing PEG content. The results of the cytotoxicity tests based on the ISO 10993-5 protocol demonstrated that the copolymers were non-cytotoxic and could be potentially used in biomedical applications.
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