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Development and thermal behaviour of ternary PLA matrix composites

2010; Elsevier BV; Volume: 95; Issue: 11 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2010.02.034

1873-2321

Elena Fortunati, I. Armentano, A. Iannoni, J. M. Kenny,

Natural Fiber Reinforced Composites

Biodegradable PLA composites were prepared using microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles. The main objective of the present study is to develop new biopolymer composites with good mechanical properties, thermal stability, maintaining the optical transparency and also providing antimicrobial properties through silver nanoparticle introduction. Composites were prepared with 1%wt of Ag nanoparticles and 5%wt of MCC using a twin-screw microextruder; film parameters were optimized in order to obtain a thickness range between 20 and 60 μm. PLA composites maintained optical transparency properties of the matrix, while MCC was able to reduce polymer permeability. Thermal analysis revealed that MCC increased PLA crystallinity and the mechanical properties of the composites demonstrated that tensile modulus was improved by microcrystalline cellulose.