Effect of internal architecture on mechanical properties of polycaprolactone scaffolds for tissue regeneration

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of internal architecture of 3D printed scaffolds on their mechanical properties. The polycaprolactone scaffolds with six different internal architectures fabricated by rapid prototyping method were tested in this study. The scaffolds were plotted using a 330 μm dispensing needle, layer by layer with lay-down pattern of the fibers: 00/150/300; 00/300/600; 00/450/900, 00/600/1200, 00/750/1500 and 00/900/1800. Morphological analyses and mechanical properties examinations were performed. The obtained scaffolds had structures with high open porosity (50-60%) and interconnected pores ranging from 380 to 400 μm. The different lay-down pattern and the angle deposition of successive fiber layers resulted in different internal architecture and pore shape of the constructs, what was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and microtomography analyzes. The geometries 00/900/1800 and 00/600/1200 were characterized with the most regular shape of pores between all analyzed architectures. The pores for 00/150/300 and 00/300/600 were not regular and arranged as a ladder-like helicoid structures. The lay-down pattern of the fibers affected significantly the mechanical properties of the scaffolds. The Young’s modulus (E) of the scaffolds was increasing with increase of the angle deposition between successive layers. The scaffolds were also subjected to cyclic loading and again geometry and mechanical properties were under investigation. For all type of scaffolds the differences of mechanical properties after dynamic compression have been noticed. The geometries 00/900/1800 and 00/600/1200 exhibited the highest Young’s Modulus after dynamic compression according to the rest of analyzed samples. According to the conducted research there is a clear correlation between internal architecture of polymeric scaffolds and their mechanical properties.