Abstract
This work explored if each step of the process of applying a hydrophilic zwitterionic coating and sterilization using ethylene oxide affected the mechanical properties of biocompatible 3D-printable polyurethane RPU-70. The 3D-printing of biocompatible polymers through stereolithography is of increasing interest as new materials come to market. Two different coating application processes were explored: namely, a solvent-based and solvent-free method. A total of six groups were tested to comprehensively determine the effects of various combinations of the process elements of coating application and ethylene oxide sterilization on mechanical properties. The material’s tensile yield strength was used as a metric. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 95% confidence was performed to determine any statistical interaction effects between the coating and sterilization along with any differences in effects between the different coating and sterilization conditions. The mean yield strength across all the groups ranged from 32.87 ± 1.745 to 34.06 ± 0.633 MPa. No statistically significant difference was found between any of the groups. Overall, ethylene oxide sterilization, the solvent-based coating, and the solvent-free coating were not shown to affect the yield strength of RPU-70.
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