Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil

Conventional plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate persist for many years after disposal. They are inappropriate for applications intended for short time such as packaging, which increases the plastic waste disposal. The accumulation of plastic waste in landfil...

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Main Author: Selvarajah, V.S. Giita
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: 2012
Online Access:http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/1/FS%202012%2079%20IR.pdf
http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/
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Institution: Universiti Putra Malaysia
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spelling my.upm.eprints.337822015-05-14T06:56:23Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/ Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil Selvarajah, V.S. Giita Conventional plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate persist for many years after disposal. They are inappropriate for applications intended for short time such as packaging, which increases the plastic waste disposal. The accumulation of plastic waste in landfills results in long-term environment, economic and waste management problems which need immediate resolution. Rising environmental concerns have directed research to the development of biodegradable polymer materials. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has a large potential as a biodegradable plastic. However, PLA has low toughness, low tensile elongation and high brittleness which limited its applications. In this research PLA was incorporated with three different samples of epoxidized palm oil (EPO). The plasticized PLA were prepared by melt blending technique using Brabender internal mixer. The effects of three different samples of EPO and their loadings on plasticized PLA were studied. Further, the optimum EPO loading with enhanced properties of PLA were determined. Results displayed the overall properties of PLA were improved with the addition of EPO. The optimum EPO loading with enhanced mechanical and thermal properties of PLA is 1 wt%. PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) showed excellent properties compared to PLA/1 wt% EPO(1), PLA/1 wt% EPO(2) and neat PLA. The tensile strength, flexural strength, impact strength and elongation at break were improved by 13%, 25%, 23% and 77%, respectively compared to neat PLA. This reveals good stress transfer of the material. Addition of 1 wt% EPO(3) also significantly decreased the storage modulus while increased the loss factor of DMA analysis. XRD analysis reveals an increase in the amorphous phase of the PLA/1 wt% EPO(3), whereas an increase in the crystalline phase of PLA/1 wt% EPO(1) and PLA/1 wt% EPO(2). Thermal properties of the plasticized PLA were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). From the results, there is significant improvement about 27% on the thermal stability of plasticized PLA with the addition of 1 wt% EPO. Further, the DSC results illustrate a decrease in the glass transition temperature due to plasticizing effect of EPO. The surface morphology of the PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) fracture surface obtained from tensile test shows a smooth surface without voids and aggregation, indicating good interaction between PLA and EPO(3). This is in agreement with the significant improvement of mechanical properties. The environmental degradation behaviors on the physical properties of plasticized PLA were studied with special reference to the influence of ageing conditions like water sorption and biodegradability. From water uptake analysis, it can be inferred that the 1 wt% plasticized PLA absorb lesser water than neat PLA. The soil burial test was carried out for 6 months, and the results indicate that EPO loading slightly promotes degradation of the plasticized PLA. Thus, PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) can be considered as an alternative to the conventional plastics used. Additionally, EPO can be seen as a potential useful plasticizer. 2012-09 Thesis NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/1/FS%202012%2079%20IR.pdf Selvarajah, V.S. Giita (2012) Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil. Masters thesis, Universiti Putra Malaysia.
institution Universiti Putra Malaysia
building UPM Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Putra Malaysia
content_source UPM Institutional Repository
url_provider http://psasir.upm.edu.my/
language English
description Conventional plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate persist for many years after disposal. They are inappropriate for applications intended for short time such as packaging, which increases the plastic waste disposal. The accumulation of plastic waste in landfills results in long-term environment, economic and waste management problems which need immediate resolution. Rising environmental concerns have directed research to the development of biodegradable polymer materials. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has a large potential as a biodegradable plastic. However, PLA has low toughness, low tensile elongation and high brittleness which limited its applications. In this research PLA was incorporated with three different samples of epoxidized palm oil (EPO). The plasticized PLA were prepared by melt blending technique using Brabender internal mixer. The effects of three different samples of EPO and their loadings on plasticized PLA were studied. Further, the optimum EPO loading with enhanced properties of PLA were determined. Results displayed the overall properties of PLA were improved with the addition of EPO. The optimum EPO loading with enhanced mechanical and thermal properties of PLA is 1 wt%. PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) showed excellent properties compared to PLA/1 wt% EPO(1), PLA/1 wt% EPO(2) and neat PLA. The tensile strength, flexural strength, impact strength and elongation at break were improved by 13%, 25%, 23% and 77%, respectively compared to neat PLA. This reveals good stress transfer of the material. Addition of 1 wt% EPO(3) also significantly decreased the storage modulus while increased the loss factor of DMA analysis. XRD analysis reveals an increase in the amorphous phase of the PLA/1 wt% EPO(3), whereas an increase in the crystalline phase of PLA/1 wt% EPO(1) and PLA/1 wt% EPO(2). Thermal properties of the plasticized PLA were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). From the results, there is significant improvement about 27% on the thermal stability of plasticized PLA with the addition of 1 wt% EPO. Further, the DSC results illustrate a decrease in the glass transition temperature due to plasticizing effect of EPO. The surface morphology of the PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) fracture surface obtained from tensile test shows a smooth surface without voids and aggregation, indicating good interaction between PLA and EPO(3). This is in agreement with the significant improvement of mechanical properties. The environmental degradation behaviors on the physical properties of plasticized PLA were studied with special reference to the influence of ageing conditions like water sorption and biodegradability. From water uptake analysis, it can be inferred that the 1 wt% plasticized PLA absorb lesser water than neat PLA. The soil burial test was carried out for 6 months, and the results indicate that EPO loading slightly promotes degradation of the plasticized PLA. Thus, PLA/1 wt% EPO(3) can be considered as an alternative to the conventional plastics used. Additionally, EPO can be seen as a potential useful plasticizer.
format Thesis
author Selvarajah, V.S. Giita
spellingShingle Selvarajah, V.S. Giita
Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
author_facet Selvarajah, V.S. Giita
author_sort Selvarajah, V.S. Giita
title Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
title_short Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
title_full Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
title_fullStr Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
title_full_unstemmed Preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
title_sort preparation and characterization of plasticized poly(lactic acid) with epoxidized palm oil
publishDate 2012
url http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/1/FS%202012%2079%20IR.pdf
http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/33782/
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