Compatible Ternary Blends of Chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol)/poly(lactic acid) Produced by Oil-in-Water Emulsion Processing

Ternary compatible blends of chitosan, poly(vinyl alcohol), and poly(lactic acid) were prepared by an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion process. Solutions of chitosan in aqueous acetic acid, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in water, and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) in chloroform were blended with a high-shear mixer....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biomacromolecules 2011-04, Vol.12 (4), p.907-914
Main Authors: Grande, Rafael, Carvalho, Antonio J. F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Calorimetry, Differential Scanning
Chitosan - chemistry
Emulsions
Exact sciences and technology
Lactic Acid - chemistry
Mechanical properties
Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
Natural polymers
Oils
Organic polymers
Physicochemistry of polymers
Polyesters
Polymers - chemistry
Polyvinyl Alcohol - chemistry
Properties and characterization
Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
Starch and polysaccharides
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Summary:Ternary compatible blends of chitosan, poly(vinyl alcohol), and poly(lactic acid) were prepared by an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion process. Solutions of chitosan in aqueous acetic acid, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in water, and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) in chloroform were blended with a high-shear mixer. PVA was used as an emulsifier to stabilize the emulsion and to reduce the interfacial tension between the solid polymers in the blends produced. It proved to work very well because the emulsions were stable for periods of days or weeks and compatible blends were obtained when PVA was added. This effect was attributed to a synergistic effect of PVA and chitosan because the binary blends PVA/PLA and chitosan/PLA were completely incompatible. The blends were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermal mechanical analysis (TMA), stress−strain tests, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results indicated that despite the fact that the system contained distinct phases some degree of molecular miscibility occurred when the three components were present in the blend.
ISSN:1525-7797
1526-4602
DOI:10.1021/bm101227q