Comparison of different processing methods to prepare poly(lactid acid)-hydrotalcite composites

The effect of the compounding method on the morphology and on the properties of poly(lactic acid) (PLA)–hydrotalcite (HT) composites was studied. Moreover, the influence of two different kinds of HT—organically modified (OM‐HT) and unmodified (U‐HT)—and their concentration was evaluated. The composi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polymer engineering and science 2014-08, Vol.54 (8), p.1804-1810
Main Authors: Scaffaro, R., Botta, L., Passaglia, E., Oberhauser, W., Frediani, M., Di Landro, L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Comparative analysis
Composite materials
Composites
Exact sciences and technology
Extrusion
Forms of application and semi-finished materials
Lactic acid
Morphology
Polylactic acid
Polymer industry, paints, wood
Polymeric composites
Production processes
Rheology
Scanning electron microscopy
Technology of polymers
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Summary:The effect of the compounding method on the morphology and on the properties of poly(lactic acid) (PLA)–hydrotalcite (HT) composites was studied. Moreover, the influence of two different kinds of HT—organically modified (OM‐HT) and unmodified (U‐HT)—and their concentration was evaluated. The composites were prepared using either a single screw extruder (SSE), a counter rotating twin‐screw compounder (TSC) or a corotating twin‐screw extruder (TSE). The prepared materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, gel permeation chromatography (GPC) analysis, mechanical and rheological measurements. The results indicated that the best morphology, i.e., particles dimension and distribution, is exhibited by materials prepared by TSE while the worse ones by the samples processed by SSE. The viscosity of all the materials containing the HT is lower in comparison with the viscosity exhibited by the neat matrix, in particular, when the OM‐HT is used. These results were correlated to degradation phenomena occurring during the processing of the materials as revealed by the results of GPC analysis. The addition of HT caused only a slight increase of elastic modulus of filled materials even when 5% of filler was incorporated. However, in full agreement with morphological analyses, the best performances were exhibited by materials prepared by TSE while the worse ones by the samples processed by SSE. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 54:1804–1810, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers
ISSN:0032-3888
1548-2634
DOI:10.1002/pen.23724