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Morphology, thermomechanical properties, and biodegradability of low density polyethylene/starch blends
Author(s) -
Thakore I. M.,
Iyer Srividya,
Desai Anjana,
Lele Ashish,
Devi Surekha
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-4628(19991213)74:12<2791::aid-app2>3.0.co;2-4
Subject(s) - low density polyethylene , starch , materials science , biodegradation , ultimate tensile strength , composite material , izod impact strength test , polymer blend , polyethylene , elongation , melt flow index , chemical engineering , chemistry , copolymer , polymer , food science , organic chemistry , engineering
The biodegradability of low density polyethylene (LDPE)/starch and LDPE/starch/starch acetate (STAc) blends was tested and observed to be dependent on STAc content. The binary and ternary blends containing up to a maximum concentration of 30% starch were examined for their thermal, mechanical, and morphological properties. The blends with no STAc or 2.5% STAc show almost no adherence of two phases. With 10% STAc, dispersion of starch was observed to increase with some adherence to LDPE. Tensile strength, elongation at break, and Izod impact strength of the blends decreased with increased starch content. However, incorporation of STAc along with starch improved all these properties, particularly elongation at break and toughness. The melt flow index was also improved on partial substitution of starch by STAc. Maximum biodegradability was observed for the blends containing 30% (starch + STAc). Cell growth was observed to increase with increasing concentration of (starch + STAc) in the blends. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 2791–2802, 1999