Improving the quality of biopolymer (poly lactic acid) with the addition of bentonite as filler

Abstract

PLA (Poly Lactid Acid) - Bentonite polymer nanocomposite which is a combination of natural and nanometer-scale inorganic substances created through three processes, mixing using a melt blending, molding with a hot press using specimens Standard ASTM D 638 Type IV and drying. In this study, PLA combined with two types of natural bentonite obtained from different areas to find differences in the quality of the results of characterization. To optimize the performance of filler, before mixing, bentonite have to furificate first with (NaPO3)6 and also open the interlayer space with CTAB. D-spacing of bentonite imterlayer were analyze by X-Ray difraction (XRD). Characterization bionanocomposite resulting morphologic structure was tested using a Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). Mechanical analysis of PLA-bentonite nanocomposite in the form of tensile strength was tested using a tensile test specimens of standard American Standard for Testing Materials (ASTM) D 638 Type 4, and thermal resistance using Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA).