Highly enhanced accelerating effect of melt-recrystallized stereocomplex crystallites on poly(L-lactic acid) crystallization: effects of molecular weight of poly(D-lactic acid)

Stereocomplexed Functional and Statistical Poly(lactide-carbonate)s via a Simple Organocatalytic System

The stereocomplexation of polylactide (PLA) has been widely relied upon to develop degradable, sustainable materials with increased strength and improved material properties in comparison to stereopure PLA. However, forming functionalized copolymers of PLA while retaining high crystallinity remains elusive. Herein, the controlled ring-opening copolymerization (ROCOP) of lactide (LA) and functionalized cyclic carbonate monomers is undertaken. The produced polymers are shown to remain crystalline up to 25 mol % carbonate content and are efficiently stereocomplexed with homopolymer PLA and copolymers of opposite chirality. Polymers with alkene and alkyne pendent handles are shown to undergo efficient derivatization with thiol-ene click chemistry, which would allow both the covalent conjugation of therapeutic moieties and tuning of material properties.

Development of PLA/Lignin Bio-Composites Compatibilized by Ethylene Glycol Diglycidyl Ether and Poly (ethylene glycol) Diglycidyl Ether

Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) is a promising green substitute for conventional petroleum-based plastics in a variety of applications. However, the wide application of PLA is still limited by its disadvantages, such as slow crystallization rate, inadequate gas barrier, thermal degradation, etc. In this study, lignin (1, 3, 5 PHR) was incorporated into PLA to improve the thermal, mechanical, and barrier properties of PLA. Two low-viscosity epoxy resins, ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) and poly (ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE), were used as compatibilizers to enhance the performance of the composites. The addition of lignin improved the onset degradation temperature of PLA by up to 15 °C, increased PLA crystallinity, improved PLA tensile strength by approximately 15%, and improved PLA oxygen barrier by up to 58.3%. The addition of EGDE and PEGDE both decreased the glass transition, crystallization, and melting temperatures of the PLA/lignin composites, suggesting their compatabilizing and plasticizing effects, which contributed to improved oxygen barrier properties of the PLA/lignin composites. The developed PLA/lignin composites with improved thermal, mechanical, and gas barrier properties can potentially be used for green packaging applications.

Mechanical properties and heat resistance of stereocomplex polylactide/copolyester blend films prepared by in situ melt blending followed with compression molding

This work focuses on the process to obtain high heat-resistant stereocomplex polylactide (scPLA)/copolyester blend films by in situ melt blending of high molecular-weight poly(L-lactide) (PLLA), low molecular-weight poly(D-lactide) (PDLA) and copolyester followed with compression molding. A copolyester of poly(ε-caprolactone-co-L-lactide) was used as a film former. Stereocomplexation, mechanical properties and heat resistance of the scPLA/copolyester blend films were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), tensile testing and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), respectively. The PDLA fractions enhanced stereocomplexation and heat resistance of the blend films while the copolyester fraction reduced film brittleness. Dimensional stability to heat of blend films was also determined and was accorded to their DMA results. It was concluded that the high heat-resistant and less brittle scPLA films could be prepared using 70/30 (w/w) PLLA/PDLA with 20 wt% copolyester through melt blending before compression molding. This film showed similar stress at break and heat resistance to those of polypropylene film but with lower strain at break.

Influence of Chain-Extension Reaction on Stereocomplexation, Mechanical Properties and Heat Resistance of Compressed Stereocomplex-Polylactide Bioplastic Films

Stereocomplex polylactide (scPLA) films were prepared by melt blending of poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) and poly(d-lactide) (PDLA) with and without an epoxy-based chain extender before compression molding. The obtained scPLA films were characterized through differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffractometry (XRD), tensile testing and dimensional stability to heat. XRD patterns revealed that all the scPLA films had only stereocomplex crystallites. The obtained results showed that the chain-extension reaction improved mechanical properties of the scPLA films, however, it suppressed stereocomplexation and heat resistance.

Controlling stereocomplexation, heat resistance and mechanical properties of stereocomplex polylactide films by using mixtures of low and high molecular weight poly(D-lactide)s

Stereocomplex polylactide (scPLA) films were prepared by blending poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) and poly(D-lactide) (PDLA) solutions before solvent evaporation. The PLLA/PDLA ratios were 80/20 and 60/40 (w/w). PDLAs with low and high molecular weights (M.W.) were used as PDLA mixtures. The scPLA films with different low/high M.W. PDLA ratios were investigated for both the 80/20 and 60/40 (w/w) scPLA film series. Stereocomplexation, heat resistance and the mechanical properties of the scPLA films were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and tensile testing, respectively. The results indicated that low M.W. PDLA can enhance the stereocomplexation and heat resistance of scPLA films while the high M.W. PDLA can improve tensile properties of scPLA films. It was concluded that the stereocomplexation, heat resistance and tensile properties of scPLA films could be controlled by adjusting the low/high M.W. PDLA ratio in PDLA fraction.

Poly(lactic acid) stereocomplexes: A decade of progress

Upon blending enantiomeric poly(l-lactide) [i.e., poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA)] and poly(d-lactide) (PDLA) [i.e., poly(d-lactic acid) (PDLA)] or synthesis of stereo block poly(lactide) [i.e., poly(lactic acid) (PLA)], a stereocomplex (SC) is formed. PLA SC has a higher melting temperature (or heat resistance), mechanical performance, and hydrolysis-resistance compared to those of neat PLLA and PDLA. Because of such effects, PLA SC has been extensively studied in terms of biomedical and pharmaceutical applications as well as commodity, industrial, and environmental applications. Stereocomplexation stabilizes and strengthens PLA-based hydrogel or nanoparticles for biomedical applications. Stereocomplexation increases the barrier property of PLA-based materials and thereby prolongs drug release from PLA based materials. In addition, PLA SC is attracting significant attention because it can act as a nucleating agent for the widely used biobased polymer PLLA and thereby the heat resistance of PLLA-based materials can be enhanced. Interestingly, a wide variety of SCs other than PLA SC are found to have been formed in the enantiomeric substituted PLA blends and stereo block substituted PLA polymers. In the present review article, a decade of progress in investigation of PLA SCs is summarized.

WITHDRAWN: PLA Stereocomplexes: A Decade of Progress

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