Effect of Different Compatibilizers on the Properties of Poly (Lactic Acid)/Poly (Butylene Adipate-Co-Terephthalate) Blends Prepared under Intense Shear Flow Field

Abstract

In this report, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and Poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) with three kinds of compatibilizers were melt blended under intensive shear flow. A self-made parallel three-screw extruder was developed to generate such flow during the process. Mechanical properties, chemical reactions among PLA, PBAT and compatibilizers, rheological behavior and morphology were investigated. The mechanical tests showed that the notched impact strength of super-tough composite with 10 wt% EGMA is about 20 times than that of pure PLA. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) results showed that the epoxy functional groups or maleic anhydride functional groups of KT-20, KT-915 and EGMA reacted with the hydroxyl groups of PLA or PBAT macromolecules, resulting in a bridge of PLA and PBAT. About rheological properties, the tan δ—angular frequency curves and the η’’- η’ curves confirmed the chemical reactions mentioned above and indicated better compatibility of η’’- η’ between PLA and PBAT, respectively. Meanwhile, the loss modulus and storage modulus—angular frequency curves demonstrated the discrepancy of different compatibilizer components. In particular, from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, it can be seen that the phase size and dispersion uniformity of PBAT adjusted by compatibilizer, corresponding to better compatibility that is described in the η’’- η’ curves. The approach for producing super-tough PLA/PBAT/compatibilizer by intensive shear flow provides a viable direction for further improving PLA performance.

High-Strength Bio-Degradable Polymer Foams with Stable High Volume-Expansion Ratio Using Chain Extension and Green Supercritical Mixed-Gas Foaming

“…A larger tanδ value implies a greater viscosity, whereas a smaller tanδ value implies better elasticity. After the addition of the CE, tanδ was significantly lower than that of pure PBAT and pure PLA, thereby indicating a faster elastic response, progressively lower viscous dissipation, and enhanced foamability [ 37 ]. This is attributed to the formation of branched structures that increase the number of entanglements between molecular chains.…”

Binary Green Blends of Poly(lactic acid) with Poly(butylene adipate-co-butylene terephthalate) and Poly(butylene succinate-co-butylene adipate) and Their Nanocomposites

“…The use of maleinized derivatives has been investigated by grafting maleic anhydride (MAH) onto PLA [ 118 ], or by using functional polymers containing the succinic anhydride [ 119 ]. Again, it was proved that the functional groups react with the -OH groups of PLA and/or PBAT promoting the interface bonding between the polyesters and thus a non-negligible effect on toughening.…”

“…The really good results achieved especially by employing MCSO take advantage of the fact that the additive was derived from agricultural waste, thus providing chemicals suitable for biobased packaging industry [115,117]. The use of maleinized derivatives has been investigated by grafting maleic anhydride (MAH) onto PLA [118], or by using functional polymers containing the succinic anhydride [119]. Again, it was proved that the functional groups react with the -OH groups of PLA and/or PBAT promoting the interface bonding between the polyesters and thus a non-negligible effect on toughening.…”

Special Issue: Processing, Structure, Dynamics and Mechanical Properties of Polymeric Materials

“…In [9], He et al prepared blends consisting of compatibilisers of different weight percentages and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) at 75 wt% and poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) at 25 wt%. For this purpose, they used a self-made parallel three-screw extruder to induce an intense shearing flow.…”