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Characterization of Combinations between Anionic-Cationic Poly(methyl methacrylate) Copolymers

Diego Gallardo¹, Brigitte Skalsky¹, Peter Kleinebudde²

¹ Evonik Industries, Darmstadt, Germany
² Institute of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany

Corresponding author: Prof. Dr. Peter Kleinebudde, Institute of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, Heinrich Heine University, Universitätstrasse 1, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany, e-mail: kleinebudde@hhu.de

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) copolymers can be classified in three groups: anionic, neutral and cationic. These copolymers are widely used to provide protection or controlled release of drugs. Combination of PMMA copolymers can be used in the pharmaceutical industry to provide specific properties to a dosage form to influence the release of drugs. In this study, countercharged copolymers were combined resulting in interpolyelectrolyte complexes (IPEC). The purpose of this study was to define how the reaction between the copolymers took place, and to be able, by using different analytical methods, to define the composition of the resulting IPECs. The polymers were combined in a reactor using organic solvents. Different anionic copolymers, varying in their percent of carboxylic groups, were combined with the same cationic polymer. Order of addition and different ratios were also parameters that influenced directly the IPEC formation. With the help of methods such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), proton nuclear magnetic resonance analysis (1H-NMR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), among others, it was possible to define quantitatively and qualitatively the composition of the IPECs.

Key words Interpolyelectrolyte complexes • Polymer combination • Poly(methyl methacrylate) copolymers