Anaerobic biodegradation of polylactic acid under mesophilic condition using thermal-alkaline pretreatment

Abstract

The propose of this study was to investigate the effect of thermal-alkaline pretreatment with emphasis on sodium hydroxide concentration (NaOH), temperature and reaction time, on enhancement of polylactic acid (PLA) films degradation and biogas production. The results found that NaOH concentration and reaction time were two main parameters influencing on PLA degradation. While, less significant was found for temperature. From the Response Surface Methodology (RSM), it was concluded that the optimum pretreatment conditions were at 0.5 M of NaOH, temperature of 60°C and 24 hr of reaction time. This was generated about 3.7 times (215.47 ml/gVSadded) higher gas production comparing to non-pretreated PLA films which was 58.28 ml/gVSadded. The maximum biodegradability of PLA film was 20.14%. This was estimated to be 4.7 times higher than non-pretreated PLA (4.32%). This finding demonstrated the benefit of thermal-alkaline pretreatment on surface of PLA films destruction. Consequently, the microbial enzymes could degrade PLA more easily, resulting in an increase of biogas production.