ABSTRACT
The petrochemical polymers take hundreds of years to decompose, resulting in accumulation of waste in dumps and landfills. The environmental impact can be minimized with the use of biodegradable polymers. In this context, this study sought an option “environmentally friendly” to replace conventional synthetic polymers through the study of biocomposites from poly(L - lactic acid) (PLLA) with the incorporation of wood waste (WW) and additives in order to develop new products. Thus, we processed three different types of samples by extrusion followed by injection of PLLA biocomposites with the addition of WW: (PLLA/WW) with addition of a coupling agent, the diphenyl isocyanate (MDI) called PLLA/WW/MDI and even with the addition of a lubricating agent, the Struktol® (s), called PLLA/WW/MDI/s containing from 0 to 40 %wt of WW. The samples were characterized by tensile strength test, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), water absorption, density, void content and Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The samples PLLA/WW/MDI/s were also evaluated by biodegradation in soil. The results revealed that samples with MDI showed better mechanical properties, lower water absorption rate, without loss of thermal stability, suggesting that MDI has promoted improvement of interfacial adhesion. The start of biodegradation process of the samples was observed after 5 months in soil, as evidenced by visual changes, as well as the TGA and DSC analysis, and the increasing content of WW accelerated the process.
Keywords:
biocomposites; PLLA; waste wood; isocyanate; Struktol®
