Fabrication, characterization, and biocompatibility of single-walled carbon nanotube-reinforced alginate composite scaffolds manufactured using freeform fabrication technique.

Composite polymeric scaffolds from alginate and single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) were produced using a freeform fabrication technique. The scaffolds were characterized for their structural, mechanical, and biological properties by scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, tensile testing, and cell-scaffold interaction study. Three-dimensional hybrid alginate/SWCNT tissue scaffolds were fabricated in a multinozzle biopolymer deposition system, which makes possible to disperse and align SWCNTs in the alginate matrix. The structure of the resultant scaffolds was significantly altered due to SWCNT reinforcement, which was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. Microtensile testing presented a reinforcement effect of SWCNT to the mechanical strength of the alginate struts. Ogden constitutive modeling was utilized to predict the stress-strain relationship of the alginate scaffold, which compared well with the experimental data. Cellular study by rat heart endothelial cell showed that the SWCNT incorporated in the alginate structure improved cell adhesion and proliferation. Our study suggests that hybrid alginate/SWCNT scaffolds are a promising biomaterial for tissue engineering applications.