Release dynamics of tetracycline from a loaded semi-interpenetrating polymeric material of polyvinyl alcohol and poly(acrylamide-co-styrene).

A semi-interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and poly(acrylamide-co-styrene) (PAMS) was prepared and its potential for controlled release of tetracycline was assessed. The IPN was characterized by IR spectral analysis and network parameters such as the average molecular weight between crosslinks (M(c)), crosslink density (q) and number of elastically effective chains (V(e)) were evaluated. The influence of various experimental conditions such as different percent loadings, composition of the IPNs, thickness of the loaded device, pH and nature of the release medium were investigated on the release profiles of the drug. Various kinetic constants such as the diffusional exponent (n), diffusion constant (D) and penetration velocity (v) were evaluated for different release processes and based on the dynamic release data, an analysis of transport mechanisms of tetracycline was made using Fick's equations.