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Preparation of high-performance PLA / PBAT blends with hierarchical structure by controlling distribution of oriented region

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Abstract

PLA is a potential fully biodegradable material, but its poor toughness and heat resistance seriously limit its wide application. In this work, a strong and tough balanced PLA based PLA/PBAT material with good heat resistance was successfully prepared using a self-designed vibration injection molding (VIM) device. From the results of SEM, SAXS, and WAXD, the internal structure of samples changed apparently compared with conventional injection molded ones. The distribution of the orientated region was controlled by changing the vibration parameters. The combination of hierarchical structure and the introduction of elastomer provide the sample with improved toughness without the sacrifice of strength. The maximum impact strength of samples can reach 20.24 kJ/m2. Besides, the thermal resistance also improves. The Vicat softening temperature can reach 71.1 ℃. This work proves the superiority of hierarchical structure for PLA/PBAT samples and provides a new method to broaden the application range of PLA materials.

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Data Availability

The data used to support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors genuinely appreciate the financial supports of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21627804) and the technical support from the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SSRF, Shanghai, China) for help with X-ray measurements.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Polymer Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, China

    Peng Li, Yixin Jiang, Jin Chen, Jie Min, Qiang Fu & Jie Zhang

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  1. Peng Li
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  2. Yixin Jiang
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  3. Jin Chen
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  4. Jie Min
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  5. Qiang Fu
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Contributions

Conceptualization, Peng Li and Jie Zhang; methodology, Peng Li; validation, Yixin Jiang, Jin Chen, Jie Min; formal analysis, Peng Li; investigation, Peng Li; writing—original draft preparation, Peng Li; writing—review and editing, Qiang Fu and Jie Zhang; supervision, Qiang Fu and Jie Zhang; project administration, Qiang Fu and Jie Zhang; All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.”

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Correspondence to Jie Zhang.

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Li, P., Jiang, Y., Chen, J. et al. Preparation of high-performance PLA / PBAT blends with hierarchical structure by controlling distribution of oriented region. J Polym Res 30, 128 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-023-03512-0

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