Retraction: Polycaprolactone composites with TiO₂ for potential nanobiomaterials: tunable properties using different phases

Abstract

Retraction of ‘Polycaprolactone composites with TiO₂ for potential nanobiomaterials: tunable properties using different phases’ by Kamal K. Gupta et al., Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2012, 14, 12844–12853, DOI: 10.1039/C2CP41789H.

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The Royal Society of Chemistry hereby wholly retracts this Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics article due to concerns with the reliability of the data in the published article.

Fig. 2a, which represents TiO₂ nanoparticles in the anatase phase, is a duplicated and scaled version of Fig. 2b, which represents TiO₂ nanoparticles in the rutile phase. The authors allege that the images are similar, not identical, as whilst the phases are different, the material is the same. An expert reviewed the author's response but concluded that it did not satisfactorily address the concerns.

Fig. 13b, which represents PCL-A composite nanofibers after degradation in PBS solution, appears to be a scaled version of Fig. 11a in a Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part A paper by the same authors, which represents PLA scaffolds after biodegradation by proteinase K.¹ The authors allege that the images are different. As raw data for Fig. 13b in this Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics paper could not be provided, there are concerns with the reliability of this image.

Given the significance of the concerns about the validity of the data, the findings presented in this paper are no longer reliable.

The authors were contacted about this retraction notice but did not respond.

 

Signed: Anna Simpson, Executive Editor, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics

Date: 17th March 2021.

References

1. K. K. Gupta, N. Pal, P. K. Mishra, P. Srivastava, S. Mohanty and P. Maiti, J. Biomed. Mater. Res., Part A, 2014, 102, 2600–2612.

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