A review on the modification of polypropylene carbonate (PPC) using different types of blends/composites and its advanced uses

Abstract

The growing greenhouse gas emission and the increasing white pollution are the major concerns that need to be addressed urgently to prevent catastrophic impacts on the environment and its sustainability. Although, the utilization of biodegradable polymers can prevent such ramifications at diverse scales, the relatively slow progress in implementing them for diverse products remains a significant drawback. Polypropylene carbonate (PPC), a carbonate-based polymer is a type of biodegradable polymer with desirable properties for carbon capture and can ameliorate the negative effects of greenhouse gases and plastic wastes. However, even with desirable properties such as malleability, biocompatibility and good oxygen barrier, the commercial utilization of PPC is still constrained due to its high cost and low thermal properties - particularly thermal decomposition temperature (Td) (180–240 °C) and glass transition temperature (Tg) ∼32 °C. Therefore, many researchers are currently focusing their efforts on minimizing these drawbacks. Alternatively, the processing of PPC and its development into varied application products have continuously channelled to the use of the presently available materials. The present article is a systematic review of different works on PPC, including the modification of PPC by different blending methods and progress on its applications, especially in the packaging sector - as a barrier material, plasticizer, energy storage material, biomedical field. The different issues that limit the widespread applications of PPC and the future research perspectives are also highlighted here.