Polysaccharide Mixed Thermoplastic Biodegradable Polymer: Synthesis and Performance Evaluation

Haydar U. Zaman; Ruhul A. Khan

Abstract

Polysaccharide-based decomposable plastics have attracted much attention due to their plenteous supply and low price. The difficulty in making environmental plastics is incompatible between hydrophilic/polar and hydrophobic/non-polar components. Two separate compatibilizers were included to increase the compatibility between the two ingredients. The objective of existing research is to create an ecological polymer composite using rice starch, which could be a step towards an alternative user-friendly polymer composite. A base material with a polar group on the low-density polyethylene (LDPE) backbone was used to address compatibility issues between starch and polyethylene. The effects of thermoplastic rice starch (TRS) content and the properties of LDPE/TRS composites have been investigated in several compatibilizers. The outcomes exhibit that the melt flow index (MFI) of LDPE/TRS composites reduced with increasing TRS content. The tensile modulus, flexural strength, and modulus of LDPE/TRS composites have increased with increasing TRS content but the tensile strength and impact strength have been adversely affected. SEM micrographs demonstrate that with the addition of maleic anhydride (MA) or dibutyl maleate (DM) compatibilizers, the blends have good interfacial adhesion and finely dispersed TRS and LDPE phases, which is reflected in the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites. The presence of DM in the composites resulted in excellent dispersion of TRS in the matrix and higher mechanical and thermal stability compared to other composites. Further, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and biodegradability were performed for various LDPE/TRS composites. Moreover, water uptake of LDPE/TRS composites was reduced by adding a compatibilizer.

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