Antibacterial of silver-containing polydimethylsiloxane urethane nanofibrous, hollow fibrous, using the electrospinning process

In this study, polydimethylsiloxane/polycaprolactone polyurethane (PU) was synthesized and added with various proportions of nanoscale silver to fabricate a series of silver-containing PU. The silver-containing PU was used to fabricate films, electrospinning was performed to nanofibrous, and coaxial electrospinning was performed to fabricate hollow fibrous membrane. Analysis of the thermal properties indicated that nanoscale silver increased the thermal degradation temperature of the PU. Increasing the concentration of nanoscale silver changed the diameter of the nanoscale fibers. The varying the concentration of nanoscale silver did not substantially affect hole areas, vessel thickness, or the alignment of hollow fibrous. An antibacterial test revealed that the sizes of the antibacterial halos of conventional film and the nanofibrous did not differ considerably. The antibacterial halo of the hollow fiber was smaller. An amount of silver remained, and the test result indicated that the hollow fiber still exhibited an antibacterial effect. In this study, the silver-containing PU films, nanoscale fiber, and hollow fibrous membranes were fabricated. Applying these products in the biomedical material industry, such as to the occlusion of wounds, wound-dressing materials, tissue engineering, and conduits for nerve repair.