Ethylene copolymer toughened polylactic acid nanocomposites
- Balakrishnan, Harintharavimal
- Masoumi, Iman
- A. Yussuf, Abdirahman
- Imran, Muhammad
- Hassan, Azman
- Wahit, Mat Uzir
Publication date
January 2012
DOI Publisher
Informa UK Limited ISSN
0360-2559 Citation count (estimate)
22Abstract
Polylactic acid (PLA)/montmorillonite (MMT) nanocomposites toughened with Biostrong (an ethylene copolymer from DuPont) was developed. PLA, Biostrong and MMT were melt blended using twin-screw extruder followed by injection molding. Impact strength improved with 2 phr MMT in PLA/Biostrong. Flexural modulus of PLA/Biostrong nanocomposites increased while the strength decreased with MMT. PLA chains were intercalated in MMT. Presence of Biostrong and MMT improved the thermal stability and crystallinity (Xc) of PLA. The storage modulus (E') values of PLA at 25–50°C dropped with Biostrong while incorporation of MMT compensated the loss. The biodegradation rate and permeability of PLA/Biostrong nanocomposites decreased with MMT
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