Morphological and thermal properties of photodegradable biocomposite films

Biocomposites containing ultraviolet (UV) radiation absorbing inorganic nanofillers are of great interest in food packaging applications. The biodegradable polylactide (PLA) composite films were prepared by solvent casting method by incorporating 1 wt % of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Ag‐TiO2 (silver...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied polymer science 2013-07, Vol.129 (1), p.362-370
Main Authors: Pillai, Sreejarani Kesavan, Ray, Suprakas Sinha, Scriba, Manfred, Ojijo, Vincent, Hato, Mpitloane Joseph
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Absorbing
Absorption
Applied sciences
Biopolymers and renewable polymers
Composites
degradation
Exact sciences and technology
Forms of application and semi-finished materials
Materials science
Nanoparticles
Nanostructure
nanowires and nanocrystals
Polymer industry, paints, wood
Polymers
Reproduction
Silver
Technology of polymers
Thermal properties
Titanium dioxide
Ultraviolet
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Summary:Biocomposites containing ultraviolet (UV) radiation absorbing inorganic nanofillers are of great interest in food packaging applications. The biodegradable polylactide (PLA) composite films were prepared by solvent casting method by incorporating 1 wt % of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Ag‐TiO2 (silver nanoparticles decorated TiO2) nanoparticles to impart the photodegradable properties. The films were exposed to UV radiation for different time periods and morphology of the composite films before and after UV exposure were investigated. The results showed that homogenous filler distribution was achieved in the case of Ag‐TiO2 nanoparticles. The thermal properties and thermomechanical stability of the composite film containing Ag‐TiO2 nanoparticles were found to be much higher than those of neat PLA and PLA/TiO2 composite films. The scanning electron microscopy and X‐ray diffraction studies revealed that the photodegradability of PLA matrix was significantly improved in the presence of Ag‐TiO2 nanoparticles. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013
ISSN:0021-8995
1097-4628
DOI:10.1002/app.38763