Production and characterization of polylactic acid/polybutylene succinate and graphene oxide-hydroxyapatite composites for bone tissue engineering

Date

2026-1

Author

Demir, Sena Nur

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In recent years, graphene oxide (GO) reinforced biocomposites have drawn attention for their potential applications in treating bone tissue damage. This thesis aims the production of composites containing hydroxyapatite (HA) and different concentrations of GO within a polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBSc) polymer blend matrix, and to investigate their structural, mechanical, and biological properties. HA was synthesized using a microwave-assisted wet precipitation method and GO was produced via Hummer’s method. The optimum PLA/PBSc blend ratio was determined as 80/20 wt.%, and the HA content was determined as 10 wt.%. PLA/PBSc based composites containing 0.5, 0.75, and 1 wt.% GO were produced through the melt blending method. Obtained composites were characterized for structural, thermal, biological and mechanical properties. Their degradation behavior was evaluated by immersing them in both PBS and distilled water. In all groups immersed in PBS, an initial increase in mass was observed due to ion accumulation, then followed by a decrease in mass. In distilled water, the highest weight loss was observed in the 0.75GO/PLA/PBSc/HA group. The highest water uptake was observed in the 1GO/PLA/PBSc/HA group, which contained the highest wt.% GO. The densities of the composites were calculated to be in the range of 1.248 and 1.31 g/cm³. The water contact angle of the samples was varied between 58.01º and 63.64º, and all composites were classified as hydrophilic. An increase in surface hydrophilicity was observed with increasing GO content. Tensile tests were conducted on both pristine samples and samples after the degradation experiment. Tensile test results revealed that the incorporation of HA caused a significant reduction, whereas the addition of GO improved significantly. Tensile tests conducted after water immersion indicated a decrease in mechanical properties for all composite groups. According to Charpy impact test results, the addition of GO had a positive effect on impact resistance. In biological evaluations, viability and ALP activity of Saos-2 cell were improved with the addition of GO in certain amount. Results suggested that 0.5GO/PLA/PBSc/HA group was the most suitable composition for bone tissue engineering applications.

Subject Keywords

Polylactic acid, Polybutylene succinate, Hydroxyapatite, Graphene oxide, Bone tissue engineering

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/118733

Collections

Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis