The environmental problems associated with the usage and disposal of petroleum-based polymers for short-term applications has increased in recent years due to bioaccumulation and degradation of these traditional materials. To reduce this problem both the removal of traditional plastics from the environment and the implementation of systems to prevent plastic accumulation must be achieved. To this end, the purpose of the present study is to explore the possibility of producing a functional thermoset biopolymer film that not only is similar in material properties but also does not accumulate in the environment. To produce these thermoset biopolymer films a mixture of sodium alginate (ALG), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), glycerol (GLY), and citric acid (CA) is formulated. A low-cost glycerol is used to enforce the flexibility of the films, and citric acid is used as a cross-linking agent which helps to reduce the water vapor permeability of the films. The crosslinking reaction parameters (different ratios, curing time, cross-linking content) were studied by comparing the characteristics of the films, such as glass transition temperature (Tg) values and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectral data, as well as the impact of the crosslinking reaction on surface morphology and thermal stability.

Crosslinked biodegradable thermoset polymer films based on sodium alginate

2019 Spring National Meeting

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