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Study of the Polymerization Kinetic of Lactic Acid
Author(s) -
Orozco Víctor H.,
Vargas Andrés F.,
López Betty L.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
macromolecular symposia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.257
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-3900
pISSN - 1022-1360
DOI - 10.1002/masy.200751206
Subject(s) - polymerization , gel permeation chromatography , lactic acid , differential scanning calorimetry , condensation polymer , polymer , materials science , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , chemical engineering , polymer chemistry , chemistry , composite material , thermodynamics , physics , biology , bacteria , engineering , genetics
Summary: Biodegradable polymers production is growing, mainly poly (lactic) acid, due to the fact that it is environmentally friendly and might be used in different fields i.e. medicine, agriculture, textiles, etc. Hence the importance of studying the polymerization process and its kinetic parameters. The polymerization process is performed by polycondensation of lactic acid using different kinds and amounts of tin based catalysts. This process is monitored during 12 hours and samples are taking for analyses every hour. Each sample is measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) to determine its molecular weight and by Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) to study the evolution of alkyl absorption bands and the disappearing of hydroxyl ones. Modulated differential scanning calorimetric analysis (MDSC) is used to study the thermal behavior of every sample during each period, such as T g displacement and changes in crystallization and melting. These data are used for the construction of the kinetic curve.