Evaluation of blended and dual-nozzle electrospun PLA/PBS nanofibers for hydrophobic drug adsorption–desorption behaviour

In this work, polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS) were processed into nanofibers using single-nozzle solution blending and dual-nozzle co-electrospinning. These different fabrication methods effected the structural, mechanical, and thermal properties of the nanofibers. Morphological analysis shows that by increasing the PBS content in the dual-nozzle system led to finer fibers due to electrostatic repulsion between the polymer jets. In comparison, solution blending produced thicker fibers because of increased viscosity and phase separation between the immiscible polymers. The dual-nozzle nanofibers exhibited superior thermal stability compared to the blended versions. Mechanical testing at the composition of 8% PLA and 3% PBS significantly enhanced the tensile strength and elongation of the nanofibers. Adsorption studies followed a Langmuir monolayer mechanism, achieving a maximum curcumin uptake capacity of 404.34 mg/g. Whereas, the release profiles were highly dependent on the polymer matrix, which PLA-rich compositions demonstrated rapid drug release, while PBS-rich domains provided more sustained retention due to their higher crystallinity. These findings suggest that the optimized PLA/PBS nanofiber blends are highly effective for applications in drug delivery, transdermal therapy, and environmental remediation.