PGA is a rigid material with high crystallinity and is insoluble in most organic solvents. It is a biodegradable polymer whose fibers have high strength and modulus. Like most polyesters, PGA can be processed by extrusion, injection, or compression molding.
Polyglycolide is absorbable, meaning it can be broken down and absorbed by the body over time. This makes it ideal for medical applications where material needs to be removed after a certain period of time. PGAs are rugged and suitable for a wide range of applications. PGA is flexible and easy to form, making it suitable for a wide range of applications. Due to its biodegradability, strength, flexibility, ease of extrusion and high strength and thermal stability and cost-effectiveness, PGA can be used in the medical industry, agriculture, 3D printing, consumer goods, packaging materials and disposable products.
Conventional PGA is usually unsatisfactory in terms of thermal stability; therefore, its heat resistance must be improved to combine with melt molding technology to prepare PGA for use in multiple fields. Through research on the thermal decomposition mechanism of PGA, it was found that compounds containing thermal stabilizers, such as deactivators for residual catalysts, can effectively improve its heat resistance.
By reacting these compounds with PGA in an extruder, we improve the heat resistance of PGA without changing its basic properties, allowing PGA to be used in melt molding processes in a variety of applications (we also develop The technology to control the hydrolyzability of PGA is suitable for applications that require long-term retention of PGA properties. We determined that the hydrolysis rate of PGA can be reduced mainly by controlling the structure of the PGA polymer terminals and reducing the small amount of residual GL in the polymer.
The structure of the PGA polymer termini can be effectively controlled in two ways: (1) adjusting the types of alcohols used as initiators in the polymerization and controlling the concentrations at which they are used, and (2) using polymer reactions to control reactions with Compound: The terminal species of the resulting polymer. Both controls are introduced into the polymer manufacturing process. These controls do not affect properties such as crystallinity and melting point.
PGA process route:
Internationally, it is mainly produced by the polycondensation of glycolic acid, glycolate, glycolide and other raw materials under the action of a catalyst. The process technology route is mainly glycolide ring-opening polymerization. This method requires multiple purifications of glycolide and then ring-opening polymerization of high-purity glycolide to prepare high-molecular-weight polyglycolic acid. The ring-opening polymerization of glycolide requires catalyst promotion, otherwise the relative molecular mass will be difficult to increase.
Features of PGA
- High strength – tensile strength 110Mpa, twice that of PLA, with excellent mechanical properties; PGA can be used with other polymer materials for extrusion and injection molding, and can also be blended with other resins to prepare polymer alloy materials .
- PGA material has good vapor/oxygen barrier properties and is one of the materials with the best comprehensive barrier properties. Its water vapor barrier performance is 100 times higher than that of PLA, which is similar to PE materials. PGA’s gas barrier properties are basically not affected by ambient temperature. PGA’s oxygen and water vapor barrier properties are 100 times that of PET and 1,000 times that of PLA.
- High heat resistance – softening point 170℃, product heat resistance above 100℃;
- It can be used for industrial or household composting. The degradation rate of PGA industrial compost is similar to that of cellulose, and it can be completely degraded after 120 days. In addition, PGA has excellent seawater degradation performance, and the degradation rate is equivalent to that of cellulose at 28 days, reaching 75.3%;
- Fully degradable and good biocompatibility
PGA has good biocompatibility and can be degraded into water and carbon dioxide in the human body. Therefore, it is widely used in medical surgical sutures, fracture internal fixation, tissue engineering repair materials, and drug controlled release systems.
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