Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep 20;16(18):6305.
doi: 10.3390/ma16186305.

Production of Biodegradable Polymeric Composites with the Addition of Waste

Fernando Antonio da Silva Fernandes  1 , Juan Carlos Valdés Serra  2 , Dayriane do Socorro de Oliveira Costa  3 , Camilo Andrés Guerrero Martin  4
Affiliations

Production of Biodegradable Polymeric Composites with the Addition of Waste

Fernando Antonio da Silva Fernandes et al. Materials (Basel). .

Abstract

Several solutions have been presented to minimize the environmental impact generated by polymers produced from petroleum resources. This work produced a biopolymer using glycerol, starch (<5) and macaúba epicarp fiber (10-15-20-25-30%) as reinforcement. The interaction of glycerol with starch was favored by the addition of acetic acid (CH3COOH). The pH was adjusted with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at a concentration of 0.1 mol·L-1. The characterization was carried out through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), infrared reflectance-FTIR, water solubility, biodegradability and technological properties. Through the results obtained in this work, it is observed that the tensile strength and modulus of elasticity are influenced by the addition of the fiber concentration; the sample that received a 30% addition presented 19.17 MPa and 348.12 MPa, respectively. All samples showed low solubility in water and low density, in addition to a high rate of degradability in soil with mass loss corresponding to 59% over a period of three months. The results of this investigation are satisfactory for the production of materials that can be used in everyday life, replacing conventional plastic.

Keywords: biodegradable composite; biopolymers; circular economy; macaúba epicarp; plastic; technological properties.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Ground macaúba epicarp, (B) glycerol, (C) corn starch, (D) magnetic stirring procedure of the filmogenic solution with temperature control and (E) polymeric matrix in Petri dish before drying in an oven (F) Biopolymer sample.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Substrate for biodegradation test.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Polymer matrix before oven drying.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Visual presented of the Polymeric matrix tested in pre-test.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Polymeric matrix tested in pre-test.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Tensile strength of composites.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Resistance to elongation at break.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Modulus of elasticity/Young’s.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Density and water solubility of composite C5.
Figure 10
Figure 10
(A) Micrograph of C4 biopolymer—A (200×), B (1000×), C (5000×) and D (10,000×). (B) Micrograph of C5 biopolymer—A (200×), B (1000×), C (5000×) and D (10,000×).
Figure 11
Figure 11
FTIR spectroscopy of biodegradable composites.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Nielsen T.D., Hasselbalch J., Holmberg K., Stripple J. Politics and the Plastic Crisis: A Review throughout the Plastic Life Cycle. Wiley Interdiscip. Rev. Energy Environ. 2020;9:e360. doi: 10.1002/wene.360. - DOI
    1. Gadaleta G., De Gisi S., Sorrentino A., Sorrentino L., Notarnicola M., Kuchta K., Picuno C., Oliviero M. Effect of Cellulose-Based Bioplastics on Current LDPE Recycling. Materials. 2023;16:4869. doi: 10.3390/ma16134869. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Yang J., Xu S., Wang W., Ran X., Ching Y.C., Sui X., Wei Y., Wang R., Al-Hada N.M. Preparation and Characterization of Bioplastics from Silylated Cassava Starch and Epoxidized Soybean Oils. Carbohydr. Polym. 2023;300:120253. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.120253. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Baekeland L.H. The Synthesis, Constitution, and Uses of Bakelite. J. Ind. Eng. Chem. 1909;1:149–161. doi: 10.1021/ie50003a004. - DOI
    1. Jayakumar A., Radoor S., Siengchin S., Shin G.H., Kim J.T. Recent Progress of Bioplastics in Their Properties, Standards, Certifications and Regulations: A Review. Sci. Total Environ. 2023;878:163156. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.163156. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources