Biodegradable thermoplastic elastomer comprising PLLCA and CaCO3 whiskers: mechanical properties, thermal stability and shape memory properties

Abstract

A biodegradable and thermoplastic elastomer—poly(L-lactide-co-e-caprolactone) (PLLCA)—was reinforced with 5, 10, 20, and 30 wt% of CaCO3 whiskers. We assessed the influence of the CaCO3 whisker content on the mechanical and thermal properties of the PLLCA/CaCO3 whisker composites. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the CaCO3 whiskers were uniformly distributed in the composite matrices. The results of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed that the glass transition temperatures (T g) of the composites increased slightly with increasing CaCO3 whisker content. At low CaCO3 whisker contents, the tensile strengths of the composites increased sharply with increasing CaCO3 content, the Young’s moduli also increased, and the elongation at break values gradually decreased. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the CaCO3 whiskers can promote the thermal degradation of PLLCA. Shape memory test results indicated that an appropriate amount of CaCO3 whiskers can improve the shape memory properties of PLLCA.