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Effect of plasticizer poly(ethylene glycol) on the crystallization properties of stereocomplex-type poly (lactide acid)

  • Published:
Wuhan University Journal of Natural Sciences

Abstract

The effects of the plasticizer poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) on crystallization properties of equimolar poly(L-lactide) (PLLA)/poly(D-lactide) (PDLA) blends were investigated. Formation of the stereocomplex-type poly(lactide acid) (sc-PLA) crystallites was confirmed by Wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses. Sc-PLA crystallites without any homochiral poly(lactide acid) (hc-PLA) formed, as the result of the incorporation of the plasticizer PEG (more than or equal to 10%(wt)) at a processing temperature (240 °C). Moreover, when the M W of PEG reached 1 000 g · mol–1, the crystallizability of stereocomplex crystallites was the best. Isothermal crystallization kinetics further revealed that PEG could accelerate the crystallization rate of sc-PLA, with the optimum crystallization kinetic parameters being obtained at 10% (wt) PEG. Several crystallization kinetics equations were applied to describe the effect of PEG on the crystallization behavior of sc-PLA. The influence of PEG on the spherocrystal morphologies of sc-PLA was also investigated using polarized optical microscopy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hubei Key Laboratory of Biomass Fibers and Eco-dyeing & Finishing, Wuhan Textile University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430073, China

    Li Cui, Rundong Zhang, Yahui Wang, Chuanjie Zhang & Yi Guo

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  1. Li Cui
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  2. Rundong Zhang
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  3. Yahui Wang
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  4. Chuanjie Zhang
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  5. Yi Guo
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Correspondence to Li Cui.

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Foundation item: Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51403160), and the Opening Project of Hubei Key Laboratory Biomass Fibers and Eco-dyeing & Finishing (STRZ2017009)

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Cui, L., Zhang, R., Wang, Y. et al. Effect of plasticizer poly(ethylene glycol) on the crystallization properties of stereocomplex-type poly (lactide acid). Wuhan Univ. J. Nat. Sci. 22, 420–428 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11859-017-1267-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11859-017-1267-9

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