Plasticizing effect of biobased epoxidized fatty acid esters on mechanical and thermal properties of poly(lactic acid)
2016
Ferri, J. M. | Samper, M. D. | García-Sanoguera, D. | Reig, M. J. | Fenollar, O. | Balart, R.
Poly(lactic acid), PLA, is a polyester that can be produced from lactic acid derived from renewable resources. This polymer offers attracting uses in packaging industry due to its biodegradability and high tensile strength. However, PLA is quite brittle, which limits its applications. To overcome this drawback, PLA was plasticized with epoxy-type plasticizer derived from a fatty acid, octyl epoxy stearate (OES) at different loadings (1, 3, 5, 10, 15, and 20 phr). The addition of OES decreases the glass transition temperature and provides a remarkable increase in elongation at break and impact-absorbed energy. Plasticizer saturation occurs at relatively low concentrations of about 5 phr OES; higher concentration leads to phase separation as observed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Optimum balanced mechanical properties are obtained at relatively low concentrations of OES (5 phr), thus indicating the usefulness of this material as environmentally friendly plasticizer for PLA industrial formulations.
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