The miscibility of collagen/hyaluronic acid/chitosan blends investigated in dilute solutions and solids

The viscosity interaction parameter of each polymer in 0.1 mol·dm− 3 CH3COOH/0.3 mol·dm− 3 NaCl solution for the collagen and 0.3 mol·dm− 3 NaCl or 0.1 mol·dm− 3 HCl solution for the hyaluronic acid and 0.1 mol·dm− 3 CH3COOH/0.3 mol·dm− 3 NaCl solution for the chitosan as well as the two-component blend systems and the ternary blend systems have been determined. These studies indicated that collagen/hyaluronic acid blends were miscible at any composition (Coll/HA: 80/20, 50/50, 20/80) in 0.1 mol·dm− 3 CH3COOH/0.3 mol·dm− 3 NaCl and 0.1 mol·dm− 3 HCl at 25 °C. In the case of Coll/HA/Ch ternary blends, the polymeric components were partially miscible. The mechanical properties of films such as tensile strength and Young's modulus depend on the blend composition. Coll/HA blends possessed a tensile strength and Young's modulus of 16.3-57.6 MPa and 1.0-1.9 GPa, respectively. The addition of chitosan to the blend led to an increase in tensile strength by approximately 50%. The results of FTIR analysis suggested that there was the existence of intermolecular interactions between functional groups of polymers.