Study of Interfacial Bonding in Fiber Reinforced Absorbable Composites

Abstract

A simple fiber reinforced composite model, a matrix droplet on fiber, was used to study the interfacial bonding of a typical absorbable system. Specifically, the changes in the interfacial bond strength as a result of changes in certain key processing variables were documented for the poly(glycolic acid) (PGA)/poly(p-dioxanone) (PDS) absorbable composite system. The processing conditions under observation were processing time, post-processing annealing temperature, and exposure to a buffered aqueous environment. The interfacial bond strength was measured using a mechanical pull-out test. A change in post-processing annealing temperature had a nonsignificant effect on bond strength; however, changes in processing temperature were significant for dry strength values.