3D Bioplotter Research Papers

The development of tailor-made polymers to build artificial three-dimensional scaffolds to repair damaged skin tissues is gaining increasing attention in the bioelectronics field. Poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) (PEDOT) is the gold standard conducting polymer for the bioelectronics field due to its high conductivity, thermal stability, and biocompatibility; however, it is insoluble and infusible, which limits its processability into three dimensional scaffolds. Here, poly(3,4-ethylendioxythiophene)-graft-poly(ε-caprolactone) copolymers, PEDOT-g-PCL, with different molecular weights and PEDOT compositions, were synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization to enhance the processability of PEDOT. First, the chemical structure and composition of the copolymers were characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared spectroscopy, and…

Tailor-made polymers are needed to fully exploit the possibilities of additive manufacturing, constructing complex, and functional devices in areas such as bioelectronics. In this paper, the synthesis of a conducting and biocompatible graft copolymer which can be 3D printed using direct melting extrusion methods is shown. For this purpose, graft copolymers composed by conducting polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and a biocompatible polymer polylactide (PLA) are designed. The PEDOT-g-PLA copolymers are synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization between 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene and PLA macromonomers. PEDOT-g-PLA copolymers with different compositions are obtained and fully characterized. The rheological characterization indicates that copolymers containing below 20 wt% of…