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Article

Novel Polyvinyl Alcohol/Starch Electrospun Fibers as a Strategy to Disperse Cellulose Nanocrystals into Poly(lactic acid)

1
Food Packaging Laboratory (Laben), Department of Science and Food Technology, Faculty of Technology, Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CEDENNA), Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH), 9170201 Santiago, Chile
2
Faculty of Physics, Center for the Development of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CEDENNA), Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH), 9170201 Santiago, Chile
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Antonio Pizzi
Polymers 2017, 9(4), 117; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym9040117
Received: 18 January 2017 / Revised: 8 March 2017 / Accepted: 17 March 2017 / Published: 7 April 2017
(This article belongs to the Collection Polysaccharides)
In this work, electrospun fibers of polyvinyl alcohol (PV) and starch (ST) were obtained to improve dispersion of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) within a poly(lactic acid) (PLA) matrix with the aim of enhancing mechanical and barrier properties. The development and characterization of electrospun fibers with and without CNC, followed by their incorporation in PLA at three concentrations (0.5%, 1% and 3% with respect to CNC) were investigated. Morphological, structural, thermal, mechanical and barrier properties of these nanocomposites were studied. The purpose of this study was not only to compare the properties of PLA nanocomposites with CNC embedded into electrospun fibers and nanocomposites with freeze-dried CNC, but also to study the effect of electrospinning process and the incorporation of CNC on the PV and starch properties. SEM micrographs confirmed the homogenous dispersion of fibers through PLA matrix. X-ray analysis revealed that the electrospinning process decreased the crystallinity of PV and starch. The presence of CNC enhanced the thermal stability of electrospun fibers. Electrospun fibers showed an interesting nucleating effect since crystallinity of PLA was strongly increased. Nanocomposites with electrospun fibers containing CNC presented slightly higher flexibility and ductility without decreasing barrier properties. View Full-Text
Keywords: electrospinning; polyvinyl alcohol; starch; poly(acid lactic); cellulose nanocrystals electrospinning; polyvinyl alcohol; starch; poly(acid lactic); cellulose nanocrystals
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MDPI and ACS Style

López de Dicastillo, C.; Roa, K.; Garrido, L.; Pereira, A.; Galotto, M.J. Novel Polyvinyl Alcohol/Starch Electrospun Fibers as a Strategy to Disperse Cellulose Nanocrystals into Poly(lactic acid). Polymers 2017, 9, 117. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym9040117

AMA Style

López de Dicastillo C, Roa K, Garrido L, Pereira A, Galotto MJ. Novel Polyvinyl Alcohol/Starch Electrospun Fibers as a Strategy to Disperse Cellulose Nanocrystals into Poly(lactic acid). Polymers. 2017; 9(4):117. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym9040117

Chicago/Turabian Style

López de Dicastillo, Carol, Karina Roa, Luan Garrido, Alejandro Pereira, and Maria J. Galotto. 2017. "Novel Polyvinyl Alcohol/Starch Electrospun Fibers as a Strategy to Disperse Cellulose Nanocrystals into Poly(lactic acid)" Polymers 9, no. 4: 117. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym9040117

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