Abstract
Gallates are widely used as antioxidants in the food and cosmetics industries. The purpose of the study was to obtain pro-ecological materials based on biodegradable polyesters, such as polylactide (PLA) and polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), and gallates. Gallates (ethyl, propyl, octyl, and lauryl) have not been used so far in biodegradable polymers as stabilizers and indicators of aging. This manuscript examines the properties of gallates such as antioxidant capacity and thermal stability. This paper also presents the following analyses of polymer materials: specific migration of gallates from polymers, SEM microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide-angle X-ray diffraction, mechanical properties, surface free energy, and determination of change of color after controlled UV exposure, thermooxidation, and weathering. All gallates showed strong antioxidant properties and good thermal stability. Due to these properties, in particular their high oxidation temperature, gallates can be successfully used as polyester stabilizers. Biodegradable polyesters containing gallates can be an environmentally friendly alternative to petrochemical packaging materials.
Highlights
Plastic waste is a serious environmental problem on a global scale
Investigating the thermal stability of gallates allowed the assessment of gallate resistance to degradation at polymers’ processing temperatures
All gallates were characterized by high thermal stability, higher than that of biodegradable polyesters
Summary
Packaging materials for food products constitute a significant part of plastic waste [1,2]. The most widely used biodegradable polymer is polylactide (PLA). This polyester can be derived from 100% renewable resources. Due to its moderately low production costs and good compliance with environmental requirements, PLA is widely used in many areas, including medicine (e.g., sutures, resorbable implants), packaging, and fibers [5,6,7]. Other important materials of the group of biodegradable polyesters are polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) of microbiological origin and their synthetic analogues. Synthetic analogues of PHAs offer greater advantages than natural-origin polymers because they can be tailored to impart a wider range of properties and to obtain tailor-made biodegradable materials for specific applications in different fields. Similar to PLA, PHAs are used in medicine, surgery, pharmacology, agriculture, and the packaging industry [8,9,10,11]
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