Chitosan blends containing hyaluronic acid and collagen. Compatibility behaviour

Degree of miscibility of chitosan (Ch) blends containing hyaluronic add (HA) and collagen (Coll) was analysed by viscometric method, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and monitored by contact angle measurements. The viscosity interaction parameter of each polymer in 0.1 mol.dm(-3) CH3COOH/0.2 mol.dm(-3) NaCl solution for Ch and 0.5 mol.dm(-3) NaCl or 0.1 mol.dm(-3) HCl solution for HA and 0.1 mol.dm(-3) CH3COOH solution for Coll as well as the two-component blend systems and the ternary blend systems have been determined. These studies indicated that chitosan/hyaluronic acid blends were miscible at the weight fraction of chitosan w(ch) >= 0.5 in 0.1 mol.dm(-3) CH3COOH/0.2 mol.dm(-3) NaCl and 0.1 mol.dm-3 HCl at 25 degrees C. In the case of ternary blends, the polymeric components showed miscibility with collagen at w(Coll) < 0.2. Moreover, it was found that the wettability of Ch/HA and Ch/HA/Coll blend films increased in comparison to the chitosan and collagen films. The study of blends by AFM showed a completely different morphology when compared with that of pure components as microdomains appeared as globular agglomerates containing more or less spherical particles instead of the independent microdomains observed in the native components, possibly as a consequence of interactions between polymers. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.