Starch

Abstract

Starch, among the other biopolymers, is a very appealing biopolymer, due to its abundant supply, intrinsic biodegradability, and yearly renewability. Because they are inexpensive substances and are flexible to be handled using ordinary machines of plastic processing, starches make an appealing low cost basis for novel biodegradable polymers. Meanwhile, the well‐known concerns of fossil fuel scarcity and the rising demand of reducing the pressure on the environment caused by the widespread usage of petrochemically produced polymers, the production, and uses of starch‐based materials that are biodegradable have attracted a lot of attention. This article begins with a discussion of starch structures in general, including both physical and chemical features. Then, starch‐based material thermal processing is explained, which covers both basic sciences such as phase transition, rheology, and microstructure and processing methodologies, formulations, and circumstances. The multiphase transitions and distinct microstructure during heat processing make starch an excellent prototype system for illustrating and conceptualizing structure–processing–property connections in polymers. For processing starch‐based materials, several traditional methods, for example, injection compression molding, casting, and extrusion and few novel processes such as reactive extrusion have also been applied. Finally, the current advancements in starch‐based materials have been explained.