Original Article
  • Effect of Grafted Biobased Acrylics on the Mechanical Properties of Polylactic Acid (PLA)/Starch Eco-Friendly Composite
  • Marcela Godoy*, Jonghwan Suhr**†

  • * Polymer Science and Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University
    ** Department of Mechanical Engineering

  • This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Using non-biodegradable polymers is a severe environmental problem as they are not recyclable and generate a large amount of waste. Biopolymers, such as starch-based composites, have been considered one of the most promising replacement materials. These eco-friendly materials have the advantage of being low-cost, biodegradable, and obtained from renewable sources. However, as starch tends to be brittle and hydrophilic, it can make these materials unusable when exposed to water and limit its processability for further applications. In this work, a biobased modified starch was grafted using two bioderived materials, lauryl methacrylate (LMA) and tetrahydrofurfuryl methacrylate (THFMA), by radical polymerization. A polylactic acid (PLA) composite based on the modified starch (m-St) was fabricated to enhance its toughness. These samples were characterized by Fourier transform infrared, 1H NMR and 13C NMR analysis, optical and scanning electron microscopy. The starch was successfully grafted, thus improving the compatibility with the PLA matrix. The mechanical properties of these films were also studied. Results from mechanical tests showed a slight enhancement of the mechanical performance of these composites when m-St was added to the PLA matrix. Such behavior is related to the improved dispersion of m-St 1:2 on PLA, confirmed by SEM images showing enhanced compatibility between modified starch and PLA matrix. This indicated excellent properties of the produced composite film for further eco-friendly applications.


Keywords: Starch, Graft polymerization, Polylactic acid (PLA), Mechanical properties

This Article

Correspondence to

  • Jonghwan Suhr
  • Department of Mechanical Engineering

  • E-mail: suhr@skku.edu