Miscibility infuence in the thermal stability and kinetic parameters of poly (3-hydroxybutyrate)/ poly (ethylene terephthalate) sulphonated blends

Abstract

The thermal degradation of miscible and immiscible poly (3-hidroxy butyrate) PHB/ poly (ethylene terephthalate) sulphonated (PETs) blends was investigated using thermogravimetric analyses. Model-free kinetic analysis, Vyazovkin and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa's methods, were used to determine the apparent activation energy in the whole interval of degradation of the pure polymers, immiscible blends, and miscible blends. The thermal stability of both polymers in their blends is higher when compared to the pure polymers. The synergistic effect in the thermal stability in the blends is higher for the miscible blend where the formation of the specific interaction between PHB and PETs occurs. The apparent activation energy of the individual polymers is higher in PETs/PHB blends, and this effect is potentiated by the miscibility of the blend.