A Spectroscopic Study of Solid-Phase Chitosan/Cyclodextrin-Based Electrospun Fibers

In this study, chitosan (chi)/hydroxypropyl--cyclodextrin (HPCD) 2:20 and 2:50 Chi:HPCD fibers were assembled via an electrospinning process that contained a mixture of chitosan and HPCD with trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) as a solvent. Complementary thermal analysis (thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA)/differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)) and spectroscopic methods (Raman/IR/NMR) were used to evaluate the structure and composition of the fiber assemblies. This study highlights the multifunctional role of TFA as a solvent, proton donor and electrostatically bound pendant group to chitosan, where the formation of a ternary complex occurs via supramolecular host-guest interactions. This work contributes further insight on the formation and stability of such ternary (chitosan + HPCD + solvent) electrospun fibers and their potential utility as smart fiber coatings for advanced applications.