Composites of waterborne polyurethane and cellulose nanofibers for 3D printing and bioapplications

Effect of the Concentration of Pigment Slurry on the Film Performances of Waterborne Wood Coatings

Wood surface decoration and protection has become a topic of public concern. In this paper, a temperature-sensitive and reversible thermochromic waterborne wood coating was prepared by using Chinese fir board as the base material and a waterborne wood coating with the pigment slurry of thermochromic microcapsules as the paint base. The optical properties, mechanical properties and chemical resistance of the waterborne wood coating were tested, and its microstructure was analyzed. The results showed that when the concentration of thermochromic pigment slurry was 30.0%, the thermochromic property of the waterborne wood coating was best. The gloss of the waterborne wood coating with 15.0% pigment slurry of thermochromic microcapsules was high. The concentration of thermochromic pigment slurry had no effect on the adhesion, impact resistance, or chemical resistance of the waterborne wood coating. Based on the above results, the waterborne wood coating on Chinese fir had the best comprehensive performance when the concentration of thermochromic pigment slurry was 15.0%. This work will provide a technical reference for the industrialization of the thermochromic coating film on wood.

Influences of cellulose nanofibril on microstructures and physical properties of waterborne polyurethane-based nanocomposite films

We herein report the effects of carboxymethylated cellulose nanofibril (c-CNF) on the microstructure, thermal and mechanical properties of waterborne polyurethane (WPU)-based nanocomposite films. For the purpose, an aqueous dispersion of hard/soft segmented WPU with a mean particle size of ∼169 nm was manufactured by using poly(propylene glycol), isophorone diisocyanate, 2,2-dimethylolpropionic acid and 1,4-butanediol. WPU nanocomposite films with 1-50 wt% c-CNF loadings were then manufactured via an efficient casting method. The FT-IR spectra revealed the presence of hydrogen-bonding interactions between the urethane/urea groups of WPU hard segments and the carboxymethyl/hydroxyl groups of c-CNF. Accordingly, the thermal and thermo-oxidative stability of the nanocomposite films was noticeably enhanced by the introduction of c-CNF. In addition, the storage moduli of the nanocomposite films as well as the glass transition temperatures of WPU hard segments increased significantly with increasing the c-CNF content by ∼7 wt% owing to the specific interactions between c-CNF and WPU hard segments.

Analysis of Drug Release Behavior Utilizing the Swelling Characteristics of Cellulosic Nanofibers

It is known that the behavior of a drug released from a supporting carrier is influenced by the surrounding environment and the carrier. In this study, we investigated the drug behavior of a swellable electrospun nanofibrous membrane. Nanofibrous mats with different swelling ratios were prepared by mixing cellulose acetate (CA) and polyurethane (PU). CA has excellent biocompatibility and is capable of high water uptake, while PU has excellent mechanical properties. Paclitaxel (PTX) was the drug of choice for observing drug release behavior, which was characterized by UV-spectroscopy. FE-SEM was used to confirm the morphology of the nanofibrous mats and to measure the average fiber diameters. We observed a noticeable increase in the total volume of the nanofibrous membrane when it was immersed in water. Also, the drug release behavior increased proportionally with increasing swelling rate of the composite nanofibrous mat. Biocompatibility testing of nanofiber materials was confirmed by CCK-8 assay and cell morphology was observed. Based on these results, we propose nanofibrous mats as promising candidates in wound dressing and other drug carrier applications.

3D Bioprinted Nanocellulose-Based Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering Applications: A Brief Review

Nanocellulosic materials, such as cellulose nanocrystals, cellulose nanofibers, and bacterial nanocellulose, that display high surface area, mechanical strength, biodegradability, and tunable surface chemistry have attracted great attention over the last decade for biomedical applications. Simultaneously, 3D printing is revolutionizing the field of biomedical engineering, which enables the fast and on-demand printing of customizable scaffolds, tissues, and organs. Nanocellulosic materials hold tremendous potential for 3D bioprinting due to their printability, their shear thinning behavior, their ability to live cell support and owing to their excellent biocompatibility. The amalgamation of nanocellulose-based feedstocks and 3D bioprinting is therefore of critical interest for the development of advanced functional 3D hydrogels. In this context, this review briefly discusses the most recent key developments and challenges in 3D bioprinting nanocellulose-based hydrogel constructs that have been successfully tested for mammalian cell viability and used in tissue engineering applications.