Poly(lactic acid)/Poly(vinyl alcohol) Biodegradable Blends Using Monobutyl Maleate as a Plasticizer and Compatibilizer

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic situation has contributed to sparking discussions about an increase in packaging combined with the nonrecommendation of reuse. For this reason, many countries have encouraged the use of biodegradable polymers. In this study, blends of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVAL) were prepared at 80/20 (w/w) in the presence of specific amounts of monobutyl maleate (MBM) as a compatibilizer. All of these components are proven biodegradable. PLA/ PVAL/MBM blend films were obtained by thermopressing, and the thermal, mechanical, and morphological properties were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), tensile tests, stress relaxation, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). DSC results suggest that MBM can act as a plasticizer, at least for the PLA matrix, reducing the T g from 60.2 °C (without MBM) to 23.5 °C in the case of the highest quantity of plasticizer (20%). Due to increase in macromolecular mobility, MBM also affects PLA crystallization. As a consequence of brittleness of the other samples, only those containing 15 and 20% of MBM (in PLA basis) did not fail the tensile and relaxation tests, showing more than 25% of elongation at break. Both the elastic and viscous parameters and the equilibrium modulus (E eq ) of the Maxwell−Wiechert mechanical system show lower values for the sample with higher MBM content. The SEM images show that the presence of the compatibilizer improves the adhesion between the PLA-rich phase and PVAL-rich phase.

Effects of High Crystallinity on the Molecular Mobility in Poly(lactic acid)-Based Microcapsules

“…1,2 This biobased polymer is considered to be one of the most promising alternatives of fossil-based polymers for a wide range of applications. 3,4 PLA has been found to be useful in various applications, such as in biomedicine and pharmaceutics, 3,5−8 in packaging from tableware and water cups to electronic product buffer, 9 and more lately in three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. 10 In addition to other biochemical or even industrial applications, PLA is an almost ideal candidate for human biomedical engineering applications also, for example, as a material in screws for bone fixation, suture threads, and drug delivery devices.…”

“…In recent years, a polymer that has attracted much interest from the point of view of both applications and basic research is poly­(lactic acid) (PLA), the polymer of interest here too. PLA is a thermoplastic polyester that exhibits a quite favorable combination of characteristics, such as excellent mechanical behavior, production from renewable resources, and biodegradability, in combination with high potential for low production cost. , This biobased polymer is considered to be one of the most promising alternatives of fossil-based polymers for a wide range of applications. , PLA has been found to be useful in various applications, such as in biomedicine and pharmaceutics, ,− in packaging from tableware and water cups to electronic product buffer, and more lately in three-dimensional (3D) printing technology . In addition to other biochemical or even industrial applications, PLA is an almost ideal candidate for human biomedical engineering applications also, for example, as a material in screws for bone fixation, suture threads, and drug delivery devices .…”

Water‐Doped Brønsted Acidic Protic Ionic Liquids for Enhanced Tributyl Citrate Synthesis in a Two‐Phase Esterification System

“…Other esters are not as versatile as phthalates, which has led the industry to focus on developing plasticizers that improve specific properties. [1][2][3] Therefore, significant progress has been achieved in the advancement of specialized plasticizers, such as adipates, [4,5] terephthalates, [6] trimellites, [7] benzoates, [8,9] sebacates, [10] citrates, [11] succinates, [12,13] maleates, [14] epoxidized oils, [15,16] and others. [17][18][19] While plasticizers are utilized in various polymers, the predominant usage worldwide (80-90 %) is attributed to plasticizing PVC.…”

Preparation and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)/poly(lactic acid) blends containing bio‐based plasticizers

“…However, the interphase compatibility between hydrophilic PVA and hydrophobic PLA is poor, some additives are needed to improve the compatibility. Gross et al 34 used monobutyl maleate (MBM) as a compatibilizer to improve the performance of PLA/PVA blends. MBM not only improved the adhesion between PLA and PVA, but also decreases the melting point of PLA as a plasticizer.…”