Enhanced Impact Resistance, Oxygen Barrier, and Thermal Dimensional Stability of Biaxially Processed Miscible Poly(Lactic Acid)/Poly(Butylene Succinate) Thin Films.

This study investigates the crystallization, microstructure, and performance of poly(lactic acid)/poly(butylene succinate) (PLA/PBS) thin films processed through blown film extrusion and biaxial orientation (BO) at various blend ratios. Succinic anhydride (SA) was used to enhance interfacial adhesion in PLA-rich blends, while blends near 50/50 formed co-continuous phases without SA. Biaxial stretching and annealing, adjusted according to the crystallization behavior of PLA and PBS, significantly influenced crystallinity, crystallite size, and molecular orientation.

In Situ Chemical Modification of Thermoplastic Starch with Poly(L-lactide) and Poly(butylene succinate) for an Effectively Miscible Ternary Blend.

Thermoplastic starch (TPS) is in situ ring-opening polymerized with L-lactide (L-LA) and directly condensed with a poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) prepolymer in an extruder using two different production pathways to demonstrate the concept "like dissolves like" in a miscible poly(lactide)/TPS/PBS (PLA/TPS/PBS) ternary blend. The TPS crystalline pattern changes from a V-type to an E-type after TPS modification with a hydrophobic-PLLA segment. Heteronuclear multiple-bond correlation confirmed the successful formation of PLLA-TPS-PBS copolymers via two different in situ chemical modification pathways (i.

Structure and properties of in situ reactive blend of polylactide and thermoplastic starch.

In this study, in situ reactive extrusion of polylactide and thermoplastic starch modified with chloropropyl trimethoxysilane coupling agent (PLA/mTPS) is proposed. The success of covalent bond formation between PLA matrix and mTPS phase is clarified by two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (2D-NMR) spectroscopy with HH TOCSY mode. This chemically bound PLA with starch gives the remarkable compatibility in the PLA/mTPS film, with not only a decreased glass transition temperature (47 °C) but also an increased crystallinity of PLA (Χ of 50%).

The effects of blend ratio and storage time on thermoplastic starch/poly(butylene adipate--terephthalate) films.

The objective of this work was to investigate blend ratio and storage time effects on the morphological, mechanical, and thermal properties of thermoplastic starch/poly(butylene adipate--terephthalate) (TPS/PBAT) films. TPS was prepared from plasticized cassava starch using a twin-screw extruder. TPS was subsequently melt-blended with PBAT with varied weight ratios (i.

Advances in research and development of bioplastic for food packaging.

Background: The article reviews the recent developments in bioplastic food packaging. Several bioplastic materials (polylactide, polyhydroxyalkanoates, and starch) have been successfully converted into food packaging using conventional plastic conversion technologies including extrusion, injection molding, and compression molding. Recently, bioplastic packaging has been developed into active packaging which can either control the release of active ingredients or scavenge undesirable substances.

Silane modified starch for compatible reactive blend with poly(lactic acid).

A reactive blend of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and a surface modified starch by silane coupling agent to achieve compatibility is proposed. A detailed structural analysis by using (1)H-(1)H TOCSY NMR spectrum clarifies, for the first time, that chloropropyl trimethoxysilane (CPMS) forms covalent bonds with starch during starch modification and consequently forms covalent bonds with PLA in the step of blending to produce a reactive blend of PLA and CP-starch. The CP-starch covalently bound with PLA provides the compatibility between PLA and starch and also plays the role as nucleating agent as identified from a significant increase of degree of crystallinity (as high as 10-15 times), as well as induces chain mobility, as identified from a slight decrease in glass transition temperature (∼5-10°C).