Oil Absorbencies of Fibers of Biodegradable and Microbial Polymers Prepared by Electrospinning Method

Abstract

Fibers of microbial polyesters, poly(3-hydroxy butyrate) (PHB) and poly(3-hydroxy butyrate-co-3-hydroxy valerate) (HB-co-HV) were prepared by electrospinning method. The obtained fibers were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microscopy, and oil absorption. The formation of fibers was strongly dependent on a concentration of solution. At a low concentration, the fibers contained beads which is from aggregation of polymer due to short evaporation time. The fine fibers with 2-5 mm diameter were obtained at 20 wt% concentration. The contact angle measurement showed that the fiber had higher water contact angle than the film due to the lotus-like effect. Oil absorbency showed that the fiber had higher than the film. Specially, the HB-co-HV fiber which was spinned from 20 wt% absorbed 65% oil which is much higher than that of a normal polypropylene-based oil paper.

Influence of Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate Micro-Bioplastics and Polyethylene Terephthalate Microplastics on the Soil Organic Matter Structure and Soil Water Properties

“…This approach can amplify both possible changes and their detectability, which would be difficult in mineral soils with low SOM content. As model bioplastics was used poly-3hydroxybutyrate (PHB), which is a poorly wettable polymer, 38 and its effect on SOM under arid conditions with a limited water supply is hard to predict. Therefore, its influence was studied in soil that had been dried under different conditions to obtain soils with various types of water configurations (i.e., structures that were formed by water molecules) that were typical for arid conditions.…”