Commercially available low density foams for single-use consumer applications are primarily produced from petrochemical feedstocks, often with environmentally unfriendly blowing agents, and have poor end-of-life disposal options. The development of expanded polymeric materials from renewable chemical feedstocks utilizing benign blowing agents to afford materials with improved degradability remains a challenge. Poly(lactide) is a promising candidate as a degradable material for preparing low density foams and has a high affinity for carbon dioxide which can be employed as a relatively non-toxic blowing agent. Unfortunately, poly(lactide) has poor properties in the melt for ideal processing into foamed materials. While previous efforts have investigated the benefits of using chain extension strategies to introduce branching and improve the foaming capability of poly(lactide), these materials have not been well-defined. We demonstrate the use of polymers with chemically well-defined branching, star polymers, enable the preparation of low density poly(lactide) foams with subcritical CO<sub>2</sub>. Additionally we show the utility of incorporating surfactants with multi-arm star poly(lactide) for formulating foams with tunable densities and surface energies. Finally, the application of these compostable foams is demonstrated as a replacement for current foams used to make decorative flower arrangements, reffered to as floral foams, which are petroleum based and non-degradable.

Low density expanded poly(lactide) with star polymers via subcritical CO<sub>2</sub> processing for biodegradable floral foams

2019 Spring National Meeting

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Low density expanded poly(lactide) with star polymers via subcritical CO2 processing for biodegradable floral foams

Low density expanded poly(lactide) with star polymers via subcritical CO₂ processing for biodegradable floral foams