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Mechanical, Fire Retardant, Water Absorption and Soil Biodegradation Properties of Poly(3-hydroxy-butyrate-co-3-valerate) Nanofilms

Journal of Polymers and the Environment volume 27, pages 2292–2304 (2019)Cite this article

Abstract

Biopolymers provide potential substitution to synthetic polymers derived from scarce petroleum materials which are not environmental friendly and biodegradable. However, there exists challenging or unanswered questions for biopolymers to be used in biomedical, film packaging, automobile, construction and commercial industries such as their mechanical performance, thermal and fire retardancy, and durability when exposed to water. In this study, we investigated one such potential biopolymer, poly(3-hydroxy-butyrate-co-3-valerate) (PHBV) for the aforementioned properties. At first, 0–15 wt% halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) was dispersed in PHBV polymer using ultrasonication process in presence of chloroform solvent. The solvent was then evaporated and PHBV/HNTs films were prepared by solution casting method. PHBV films without HNTs (neat) were also prepared for baseline comparison. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and tensile tests were then performed to study the thermal and mechanical properties of these films. The horizontal burning test (HBT) was also carried out to investigate the fire retardancy behavior. Finally, the water absorption and soil biodegradability behavior of these composites were investigated by submerging the films in water and Alabama soil conditions. PHBV films with 3 wt% loading showed optimum enhancement in thermal stability and tensile properties. In contrast, films with 10–15 wt% HNTs loading showed superior fire-retardancy, better water resistance and faster soil degradation over neat counterpart.

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Acknowledgements

The authors like to thank the National Science Foundation (NSF) for supporting this work through Grants: CREST HRD-1137681, HBCU-UP RIA-HRD1409918, MRI DMR-1725513 and REU DMR-1659506.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL, 36088, USA

    Shaik Zainuddin, S. M. Kamrul Hasan & Mahesh Hosur

  2. Department of Chemistry, Fayetteville State University, Fayetteville, NC, 28301, USA

    Daniel Loeven

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  1. Shaik Zainuddin
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  2. S. M. Kamrul Hasan
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  4. Mahesh Hosur
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Correspondence to Shaik Zainuddin.

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Zainuddin, S., Kamrul Hasan, S.M., Loeven, D. et al. Mechanical, Fire Retardant, Water Absorption and Soil Biodegradation Properties of Poly(3-hydroxy-butyrate-co-3-valerate) Nanofilms. J Polym Environ 27, 2292–2304 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10924-019-01517-9

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Keywords

  • Nanocomposites
  • HNTs
  • Fire retardancy
  • Water absorption
  • Soil biodegradation