Study of the printability and rheological behavior of inks formulated with collagen- polycaprolactone-chitosan

The development of inks for use in 3D printing remains a significant challenge in the field of tissue engineering. In this study, the dimensionless printability factor is calculated by comparing printed images with the desired design, resulting in a value of 0.87 ± 0.11 for ink with the lowest polycaprolactone (PCL) content. A filament collapse test was conducted to ascertain the grid pore size, with results attained within the range of 0.60 to 1 mm. The rheological behavior of inks formulated with collagen (Col), polycaprolactone (PCL) and chitosan (Chi) exhibit shear-thinning viscosity, and decreasing rheological properties with increasing temperature. The storage (G′) and loss (G′′) moduli increase with increasing angular frequency. Results reveal that increasing polymer concentration improves printability and rheological properties of the Col: PCL: Chi inks, allowing the printing of scaffolds with regulated properties leading to important applications in tissue engineering.