A novel preparation of highly interconnected macroporous poly(ethylene glycol) terephthalate-b-poly(butylene terephthalate) copolymer scaffolds

Based on poly(ethylene glycol) terephthalate-b-poly(butylene terephthalate) multiblock copolymers, highly interconnected macroporous scaffolds are fabricated via hydrolysis in PBS. The scaffold morphologies are closely related to polymer composition and aging time. The copolymers with molar ratios of PEGT to PBT 31 : 69 and 22 : 78 have exhibited highly interconnected macroporous structures after more than 100 d degradation. Pore diameters could be controlled within the range of 2-.50 mum by varying the aging time, and the porosity of scaffold treated for 100 d is about 88% for the copolymer with PEGT molar fraction of 31%. However, those copolymers with PEGT molar fraction of 17% and 44% could not form porous matrices. Therefore, the content of hard domains as physical cross-linking junctions in the matrix is of critical importance for the preparation of scaffold.