Internal Structure Dependence of Biodegradation for Polyamide 4 Thin Films in Seawater.

Recently, polyamides have been widely used in various fields due to their excellent durability, thermal stability, and other advantageous properties. However, polyamide products that end up in oceans have become a source of microplastics. For this reason, the development of highly degradable polyamides is greatly desired.

Water-Induced Crystal Transition and Accelerated Relaxation Process of Polyamide 4 Chains in Microfibers.

Microplastics have recently been identified as one of the major contributors to environmental pollution. To design and control the biodegradability of polymer materials, it is crucial to obtain a better understanding of the aggregation states and thermal molecular motion of polymer chains in aqueous environments. Here, we focus on melt-spun microfibers of a promising biodegradable plastic, polyamide 4 (PA4), with a relatively greater number density of hydrolyzable amide groups, which is regarded as an alternative to polyamide 6.