Abstract
Green composite films of natural rubber/bacterial cellulose composites (NRBC) were prepared via a latex aqueous microdispersion process. The acid modified natural rubber/bacterial cellulose composites (ANRBC), in which lactic acid was used, showed significant improvement in mechanical properties, melting temperature, and high resistance to polar and non-polar solvents. The ANRBC films exhibited improved water resistance over that of BC and NRBC films, and possessed a higher resistance to non-polar solvents, such as toluene, than NR and NRBC films. The modification had a slight effect on the degradability of the composite films in soil. The NRBC and ANRBC films were biodegradable; the NRBC80 and ANRBC80 films were degraded completely within 3 months in soil. NRBC and ANRBC showed no antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus and did not show cytotoxic effects on the HEK293 and HaCaT cell lines.
Highlights
Natural rubber (NR) is a raw material for a variety of elastomer industries, such as tires, gloves, automotive interior parts and packaging, because of its excellent elastic properties
ANRBC20 shows a slight increase in hydrophilicity when compared to NRBC20 film due lactic acid modification, ANRBC20 shows a slight increase in hydrophilicity when compared to to a more hydrophilic polymer surface generated by acid treatment
The interfacial interaction between NR and Bacterial cellulose (BC) in natural rubber/bacterial cellulose composites (NRBC) composite films and the structural stability were improved by lactic acid modification
Summary
Natural rubber (NR) is a raw material for a variety of elastomer industries, such as tires, gloves, automotive interior parts and packaging, because of its excellent elastic properties. NR has some less desirable properties, such as low strength and abrasion resistance. NR’s mechanical properties vary with temperature; the softness of NR increases with increasing temperature, whereas its brittleness increases at low temperatures. NR has poor chemical resistance to non-polar solvents such as acetone and benzene. Reinforcement is used as a method for increasing NR’s mechanical properties, for instance its modulus and strength. Carbon black and silica nanoparticles have been widely used as reinforcing agents [1,2,3]. Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a nanocellulose that has been studied for use in reinforcing NR [4]. BC is produced by Acetobacter xylinium in the form of nanofibers
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