Dispersion polymerization of vinyl monomers in supercritical carbon dioxide in the presence of drug molecules: A one-pot route for the preparation of controlled delivery systems

The polymerization of 1-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone in supercritical carbon di- oxide in the presence of ibuprofen as a model drug was investigated as a new one-pot process for the preparation of polymer-based drug delivery systems (DDSs). The com- posites were prepared at 65 � C and P ¼ 31-42 MPa by changing the initial con- centration of the drug and the concentration of a crosslinking agent and that of a hydrophobic comonomer. The effects of these parameters on the performances of the polymerization and on the in vitro release kinetics of ibuprofen were studied. In all the experiments, part of the drug was entrapped inside the polymer particles and dissolved more slowly with respect to the pure …