Effect of modified calcium carbonate on the thermal and mechanical properties of biodegradable poly(L-lactic acid)

Abstract

Modified calcite CaCO3 (M-CaCO3) was synthesized from calcium nitrate, sodium carbonate, ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid and sodium dodecyl sulfate. Then, poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA)/ M-CaCO3 composites were fabricated using melt blending and hot-press forming technologies. The effect of M-CaCO3 on the thermal and mechanical performance of PLLA was investigated. The results showed that the crystallization temperature and M-CaCO3 content significantly affected the crystallization of PLLA but the effect of M-CaCO3 on the crystallization of PLLAwas very complicated. Compared to neat PLLA, 1 % M-CaCO3 decreased the t1/2 from 3999.4 s to 342.7 s at 100 °C. The melt index measurements indicated that a small amount of M-CaCO3 could block the fluidity of PLLA.However, the addition of a high content M-CaCO3 increased the fluidity of PLLA. The results of tensile strengths and elongation at break of PLLA/M-CaCO3 composites showed that both M-CaCO3 content and defective modification CaCO3 affected the mechanical performance of the PLLA/M-CaCO3 composites.