Methods of Analyses for Biodegradable Polymers: A Review

Abstract

Biodegradable polymers are materials that can decompose through the action of various environmental microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, to form water and carbon dioxide. The biodegradability characteristics have led to a growing demand for the accurate and precise determination of the degraded polymer composition. With the advancements in analytical product development, various analytical methods are available and touted as practical and preferable methods of bioanalytical techniques, which enable the understanding of the complex composition of biopolymers such as polyhydroxyalkanoates and poly(lactic acid). The former part of this review discusses the definition and examples of biopolymers, followed by the theory and instrumentation of analytical methods applicable to the analysis of biopolymers, such as physical methods (SEM, TEM, weighing analytical balance, etc.), chromatographic methods (GC, THM-GC, SEC/GPC), spectroscopic methods (NMR, FTIR, XRD, XRF), respirometric methods, thermal methods (DSC, DTA, TGA), and meta-analysis. Special focus is given to the chromatographic methods, because this is the routine method of polymer analysis. The aim of this review is to focus on the recent developments in the field of biopolymer analysis and instrument application to analyse the various types of biopolymers.

Degradable π-Conjugated Polymers

“…IR and Raman spectroscopy can also provide qualitative information about functional groups that may be unique to degradants and can differentiate between polymers, oligomers, and small molecules (Figure c). To further complement the aforementioned techniques, both SEM and XPS provide information about polymer surfaces, with SEM demonstrating visible surface deterioration (Figure g), and XPS providing information about chemical changes on the polymer surface, , making both techniques useful for monitoring the bulk degradation on polymer film surfaces (Figure f). For quantitative information on the degradation of polymer films, techniques such as total organic carbon (TOC) analysis to detect the loss in carbon atom, and quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) monitoring may be used.…”

Eco-friendly biodegradable nanocomposite materials and their recent use in food packaging applications: a review

“…1 Analytical techniques for evaluation of biodegradable polymers. 107 Therefore, these materials might be useful for extending the shelf life of food products. 14 Products that are biodegradable or appropriate for human consumption must have a number of features, including nontoxicity, lipid or water solubility, physicochemical properties, pH dependency, and a moisture/gas barrier.…”

Atomic spectrometry update: review of advances in the analysis of metals, chemicals and materials

“…The third review of relevance to this section was presented by Baidurah who, with the aid of 109 references, discussed the methods of analysis for biodegradable polymers . 103 The methods of analysis discussed included many of the microscopic (SEM, TEM), chromatographic (gas chromatography and derivatives), thermal (differential thermal analysis, thermogravimetric analysis) and other spectroscopic (NMR, FTIR and XRD) ones and so was by no means specialised for atomic spectrometry. However, there was also a section on XRF analysis.…”