AVS 45th International Symposium
    Applied Surface Science Division Wednesday Sessions
       Session AS-WeA

Paper AS-WeA5
Hydrolysis Degradation of Biodegradable Polymers A Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Study

Wednesday, November 4, 1998, 3:20 pm, Room 307

Session: Polymer Surfaces, Films and Interfaces
Presenter: J. Chen, State University of New York, Buffalo
Authors: J.A. Gardella, Jr., State University of New York, Buffalo
J. Chen, State University of New York, Buffalo
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Biodegradable polymers have found many applications such as controlled release for drug delivery and as wound healing devices. The characteristics of surface hydrolysis as a degradation mechanism for biodegradable polymers are crucial to the application. Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF SIMS) makes it possible to observe the in-vitro hydrolysis products directly as intact low molecular weight oligomers. In this study, we have investigated the hydrolysis degradation of important biodegradable polymers, in particular, polyesters such as poly(glycolic acid) (PGA), poly(lactic acid) (PLA), the copolymer poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLG) and various polyanhydrides. The in-vitro hydrolysis reaction is conducted on polymer disc samples at 37 @super 0@C in a physiological buffer for a range of hydrolysis periods from one to twelve hours. The hydrolysis products are observed in ToF SIMS spectra as peaks assigned to intact molecular ions. The molecular weight distribution of hydrolysis products is then obtained. The capability of using ToF SIMS in direct characterization of surface degradation kinetics of biodegradable polymers is demonstrated.