Ultra-toughened poly(glycolic acid)-based blends with controllable hydrolysis behavior fabricated via reactive compatibilization

Abstract

In view of the increasingly serious environmental pollution problems and the implementation of the international plastic restriction order, the development and modification of biodegradable plastics are imminent. As a promising biodegradable polyester, the production scale of poly(glycolic acid) (PGA) has gradually expanded, but its application is dramatically limited by its inherent brittleness and rapid degradation. In this work, the effects of flexible hydrophobic poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and multi-epoxy chain extender (CE) on the properties of PGA were investigated. 1H NMR and FTIR results demonstrated that CE mediated the copolymerization of PGA and PCL during the blending process. The in situ formed copolymer PGA-g-CE-g-PCL greatly improved the two-phase compatibility, thereby significantly enhanced the toughness of PGA. The tensile testing results showed that the elongation at break of PGA increased even more than 2400 % after adding 10 wt% PCL and 1 wt% CE. At the same time, the uniform distribution of PCL dramatically reduced the hydrolysis rate of PGA. This work provides an effective way for the modification of PGA, which has potential application prospects in the fields of medical devices and food packaging.