☆ 4.7 Article

Evaluation of the Factors Affecting the Disintegration under a Composting Process of Poly(lactic acid)/Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PLA/PHB) Blends

POLYMERS (2021)

Journal

POLYMERS

Volume 13, Issue 18, Pages -

Publisher

MDPI

DOI: 10.3390/polym13183171

Keywords

poly(lactic acid); poly(hydroxybutyrate); plasticizer; biobased; biodegradation; compostability

Funding

National Research Council of Argentina, ANCyPT [PICT 2034, PICT 1318, PICT 2677]
National University of Mar del Plata

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Abstract

The migration behavior and disintegration of films based on PLA-PHB blends under composting conditions were studied. It was found that plasticized PHB degraded the fastest, with the TB plasticizer speeding up the process. Different degradation mechanisms were identified for PLA and PHB.

The overall migration behavior and the disintegration under composting conditions of films based on plasticized poly(lactic acid)/poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PLA-PHB) blends were studied, with the main aim of determining the feasibility of their application as biodegradable food packaging materials. The role of composition in the disintegration process was evaluated by monitoring the changes in physical and thermal properties that originated during the degradation process. PLA and PHB were blended in two weight ratios with 15 wt% of tributyrin, using a Haake mixer and then compression molded into similar to 150 mu m films. We found that the migration level of all of the studied blends was below check intended meaning retained in non-polar simulants, while only plasticized blends could withstand the contact with polar solvents. The disintegration of all of the materials in compost at 58 degrees C was completed within 42 days; the plasticized PHB underwent the fastest degradation, taking only 14 days. The presence of the TB plasticizer speeded up the degradation process. Different degradation mechanisms were identified for PLA and PHB. To evaluate the annealing effect separately from bacteria degradation, the influence of temperature on materials in the absence of a compost environment was also studied. With the increasing time of degradation in compost, both melting temperature and maximum degradation temperature progressively decreased, while the crystallinity degree increased, indicating that the samples were definitely degrading and that the amorphous regions were preferentially eroded by bacteria.

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Electrospun Polylactic Acid-Based Fibers Loaded with Multifunctional Antibacterial Biobased Polymers

A. Chiloeches, R. Cuervo-Rodriguez, Y. Gil-Romero, M. Fernandez-Garcia, C. Echeverria, A. Munoz-Bonilla

Summary: This study reports the development of antibacterial and compostable electrospun polylactic acid (PLA) fibers by incorporating a multifunctional biobased polymer in the process. The resulting fibers demonstrate high antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In addition, the antibacterial polymer does not impede the disintegrability of the material.

ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS (2022)