A comprehensive review of various biopolymer composites and their applications: From biocompatibility to self-healing

Abstract

Biopolymers are appealingly pleasing due to their biocompatibility and biodegradability, and they deserve further investigation due to these characteristics. Biopolymers are a general term that refers to a range of plastics made from renewable biomass sources such as pea starch, vegetable oil, corn starch, etc. When used in conjunction with bioinspired polymeric materials (as well as several biopolymers) that have been scientifically extracted from specific polymers and tailored to specific applications. On the other hand, the use of bioplastics has been associated with many environmental issues, including unfavourable land use change and greenhouse gas emissions, necessitating an assessment of the true environmental impact of bioplastic use in the first place. In this review, reactive compatibilization strategies of the most popular plant polysaccharides in blends with biobased polymers are examined critically in terms of their current state and prospects for the future. The processes for the modification and compatibilization of biopolymer-based materials, as well as their practical implementation, are reviewed. The efficacy of these strategies is examined in depth using polymer physics interpretations of blending and compatibilization as well as morphology, rheology, and mechanical properties of biopolymers. This includes a discussion of their macroscopic behaviour, rheological and mechanical properties that can be used to achieve biocompatibility and self-healing characteristics and the scientific and technological limitations and opportunities associated with these properties.