Polymer Engineering and Science, Vol.59, No.12, 2498-2501, 2019
Transport Properties of Poly(lactic acid)/Clay Nanocomposites
Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is one of the most promising sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based polymers. One of the main applications is in the packaging industry. Therefore, this article deals with the evaluation of gas transport properties polylactic acid 2003D nanocomposite. Montmorillonite-based fillers, Cloisite (R) 10A, 20A, 30B and natural Cloisite (R) Na+, intended to enhance the transport properties, were incorporated into a series of PLA films. The influence of the additive on the transport properties was studied under the conditions of melt processing. Further material morphology was assessed using X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The best results achieved compositions with PLA/Cloisite10A and Cloisite 30B with improvement more than 50%. (C) 2019 Society of Plastics Engineers