Electron Irradiation‐Induced Properties of Polycaprolactone for Potential Medical Applications

Abstract The irradiation crosslinking behavior of polycaprolactone (PCL) with different number‐average molecular weights ( M n ) was investigated on an electron accelerator. PCL with M n of 80,000 g/mol and an irradiation dose of 180 kGy exhibited the optimal shape memory property. The DSC results indicated that the melting points of PCL significantly decreased after irradiation, and the crystallinity initially increased and subsequently decreased with increasing irradiation dose. The irradiation crosslinking had little effect on the hardness (∼5 HV) of PCL, which was suitable for medical applications. Mechanical properties increased continuously with the increasing of molecular weight, but decreased for the PCL‐8 with the increasing of irradiation dose. The cytotoxicity tests showed that all samples were safe and non‐toxic to cells, indicated high biocompatibility and safety.