Abstract
Polylactide (PLA)/wood flour composite foam were prepared through a batch foaming process. The effect of the chain extender on the crystallization behavior and dynamic rheological properties of the PLA/wood flour composites were investigated as well as the crystal structure and cell morphology of the composite foams. The incorporation of the chain extender enhanced the complex viscosity and storage modulus of PLA/wood flour composites, indicating the improved melt elasticity. The chain extender also led to a decreased crystallization rate and final crystallinity of PLA/wood flour composites. With an increasing chain extender content, a finer and more uniform cell structure was formed, and the expansion ratio of PLA/wood flour composite foams was much higher than without the chain extender. Compared to the unfoamed composites, the crystallinity of the foamed PLA/wood flour composites was improved and the crystal was loosely packed. However, the new crystalline form was not evident.
Highlights
Diminishing petroleum resources and the increasingly serious “white pollution” due to petroleum-based plastics has spurred the development of environmentally-friendly materials.Bio-based and biodegradable polymers have been extensively studied [1,2,3,4]
PLA showed an adsorption band at 1750 cm−1 ascribed to the stretching vibration of the carbonyl group, and the intensity of this band decreased with the incorporation of CE, which was due to the interaction of the epoxy group and carboxyl group
Storage modulus reflects the elasticity of composites, which has a close relationship with the melt strength and is an indication of the resistance for the melt extension
Summary
Diminishing petroleum resources and the increasingly serious “white pollution” due to petroleum-based plastics has spurred the development of environmentally-friendly materials.Bio-based and biodegradable polymers have been extensively studied [1,2,3,4]. PLA exhibits excellent mechanical strength, biocompatibility, and biodegradability equivalent to, or even better than many petroleum-based polymers [5,6,7]. All of these properties make PLA, especially PLA foams [1,8,9,10,11,12,13,14], an alternative to petroleum-based polymer foams [15,16] in many applications ranging from daily necessities to the high added value products including food packaging, insulation panels, drug delivery, and biological scaffolds [6,7,17,18,19,20,21]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
