Influence of the plasticizer on rice bran-based eco-friendly bioplastics obtained by injection moulding

The manufacture of eco-friendly bioplastic materials from renewable resources to replace petroleum-based plastics has attracted increasing attention. For many years, proteins, lipids and polysaccharides have been proposed as natural biopolymers sources to obtain biodegradable plastic materials. As by-product from the rice industry, rice bran, is an available and non-expensive resource of both proteins and starches, food groups that, properly processed, can be employed in the development of bioplastics. Plasticizers are essential for the manufacture of bioplastics and, when carbohydrate/protein mixtures are used, an adequate selection of plasticizers must be addressed. By these means, a material suitable for thermo-mechanical processing methods is obtained if starches are subjected to shear forces under high temperatures and water excess (gelatinisation). Moreover, additional polyol-based plasticizers, such as glycerol and sorbitol, allow obtaining reinforced products with improved elasticity when protein-based bioplastics are processed. The aim of the present study was to analyse the plasticizing effect of water combined with different proportions of glycerol or sorbitol, as well as their influence on the final bioplastic properties. Results indicate that higher water ratios produce stiffer bioplastics with improved viscoelastic moduli, maximum stress and Young´s modulus, while increasing the glycerol and sorbitol content leads to higher elasticities and water uptake capacities in general. Moreover, sorbitol seems to provide more suitable bioplastics with better tensile (up to 500% in Young´s modulus) and functional properties compared to glycerol.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación y FEDER RTI2018-097100-B-C2