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Advances in Bio-Based Polymers
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Advances in Bio-Based Polymers

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 September 2023) | Viewed by 9555

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Mitchell P. Jones

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Materials Science and Technology, Faculty of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, TU Wien, 1040 Vienna, Austria
Interests: biotechnology; composites; natural polymers; polymeric materials; recycling

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The use of polymeric materials has exploded over the last few decades, achieving such market saturation that it is rare to find a consumer product that does not incorporate polymers in some way. Traditionally, research on the polymer space has focused on achieving desired technical properties for targeted applications. However, in light of the new recognition of the urgency of action to mitigate climate change and resource depletion, this research emphasis has been replaced with a focus on polymer sustainability and how it can be improved.

This Special Issue focuses on advancements in the extension of the technical capacities of natural and bio-based polymers and overcoming the challenges related to their adoption across traditionally fossil-derived polymer industries and products. Natural and bio-based polymers can exhibit limited mechanical, barrier or other properties, are often hydrophilic, and their biodegradability can be at odds with maintaining durability and product function during their service life.

Of particular interest are papers documenting improvements in desirable material properties of natural or other bio-based polymers, their composites or products made therefrom for existing applications, new applications for these polymers, design strategies compensating for property limitations and providing extension of use or similar. Reviews should have a novel scope or include considerable critical analysis and discussion.

Dr. Mitchell P. Jones
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • natural
  • bio-based
  • polymers
  • sustainability
  • development
  • material properties
  • applications
  • industry
  • consumer products and markets

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3691 KiB  
Article
Development of Polyhydroxybutyrate-Based Packaging Films and Methods to Their Ultrasonic Welding
by Viktoriia Talaniuk, Marcin Godzierz, Alina Vashchuk, Maksym Iurhenko, Paweł Chaber, Wanda Sikorska, Anastasiia Kobyliukh, Valeriy Demchenko, Sergiy Rogalsky, Urszula Szeluga and Grażyna Adamus
Materials 2023, 16(20), 6617; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16206617 - 10 Oct 2023
Viewed by 876
Abstract
This study developed a technical task associated with the formation of welded joints based on biodegradable polymers and their subsequent physicochemical characterization. The primary objective was to establish the effect of the welding process and modification of natural poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) with N,N-dibutylundecenoylamide (DBUA) [...] Read more.
This study developed a technical task associated with the formation of welded joints based on biodegradable polymers and their subsequent physicochemical characterization. The primary objective was to establish the effect of the welding process and modification of natural poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) with N,N-dibutylundecenoylamide (DBUA) as a plasticizing agent on the structure and properties of PHB-based biopolymer materials as well as the process and structure of welded joints formation using ultrasonic welding technique. The weldability of biodegradable layers based on PHB and PHB/DBUA mixture was ultrasonically welded and optimized using a standard Branson press-type installation. The effect of the DBUA plasticizer and welding process on the structure of PHB-based biodegradable material was investigated using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, FT-IR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermomechanical analysis. The results confirmed that the DBUA acted as an effective plasticizer of PHB, contributing to lower crystallinity of the PHB/DBUA mixture (63%) in relation to the crystallinity degree of pure PHB film (69%). Ultrasonic welding resulted in an additional increase (approximately 8.5%) in the degree of crystallinity in the PHB/DBUA in relation to the initial PHB/DBUA mixture. The significant shift toward lower temperatures of the crystallization and melting peaks of PHB modified with DBUA were observed using DSC concerning pure PHB. The melt crystallization process of PHB was affected by welding treatment, and a shift toward higher temperature was observed compared with the unwelded PHB/DBUA sample. The butt-welded joints of biodegradable PHB/DBUA materials made using the ultrasonic method tested for tensile strength have damaged the area immediately outside the joining surface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Bio-Based Polymers)
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27 pages, 13344 KiB  
Article
Influence of Rheological and Morphological Characteristics of Polyhydroxybutyrate on Its Meltblown Process Behavior
by Tim Höhnemann and Ingo Windschiegl
Materials 2023, 16(19), 6525; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16196525 - 01 Oct 2023
Viewed by 731
Abstract
Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a promising biopolymer. However, processing PHB in pure form in thermoplastic processes is limited due to its rapid degradation, very low initial crystallization rate, strong post-crystallization, and its low final stretchability. In this article, we screened commercial PHBs for morphological [...] Read more.
Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a promising biopolymer. However, processing PHB in pure form in thermoplastic processes is limited due to its rapid degradation, very low initial crystallization rate, strong post-crystallization, and its low final stretchability. In this article, we screened commercial PHBs for morphological characteristics, rheological properties, and “performance” in the meltblown process in order to reveal process-relevant properties and overcome the shortcoming of PHB in thermoplastic processes for fiber formation. An evaluation of degradation (extruded (meltblown) material vs. granules) was performed via rheological and SEC analysis. The study revealed large differences in the minimum melt temperature (175 up to 200 °C) and the grade-dependent limitation of accessible throughput on a 500 mm plant. The average fiber diameter could be lowered from around 10 μm to 2.4 μm in median, which are the finest reported values in the literature so far. It was found that the determination of the necessary process temperature can be predicted well from the complex shear viscosity. Different to expectations, it became apparent that a broader initial molar mass distribution (>8) is suitable to overcome the state-of-the art limitations of PHAs in order to stabilize fiber formation, increase the productivity, and obtain better resistance towards thermal degradation in process. Accordingly, longer polymer chain fractions could be more affected by degradation than medium and short polymer chains in the distribution. Further, a low initial narrow distributed molar mass resulted in too brittle fabrics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Bio-Based Polymers)
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15 pages, 6247 KiB  
Article
Flame Retardancy and Thermal Property of Environment-Friendly Poly(lactic acid) Composites Based on Banana Peel Powder
by Fanbei Kong, Baisheng Nie, Chao Han, Dan Zhao, Yanan Hou and Yuxuan Xu
Materials 2022, 15(17), 5977; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15175977 - 29 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1739
Abstract
Banana peel powder (BPP) was used to prepare poly(lactic acid) (PLA) bio-based composites and the flame retardancy was enhanced by introducing silica-gel microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate (MCAPP). The results showed that the limiting oxygen index (LOI) of PLA containing 15 wt % BPP was [...] Read more.
Banana peel powder (BPP) was used to prepare poly(lactic acid) (PLA) bio-based composites and the flame retardancy was enhanced by introducing silica-gel microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate (MCAPP). The results showed that the limiting oxygen index (LOI) of PLA containing 15 wt % BPP was 22.1% and just passed the UL-94 V-2 rate. Moreover, with the introduction of 5 wt % MCAPP and 15 wt % BPP, the PLA composite had a higher LOI value of 31.5%, and reached the UL-94 V-0 rating, with self-extinguishing and anti-dripping abilities. The PLA/M5B15 also had a lower peak heat release rate (296.7 kW·m−2), which was 16% lower than that of the PLA/B15 composite. Furthermore, the synergistic effects between MCAPP and BPP impart better thermal stability to PLA composites. According to the investigation of the char residue and pyrolysis gaseous products, MCAPP with BPP addition is beneficial to the formation of a higher quality char layer in the solid phase but also plays the flame retardant effect in the gas phase. This work provides a simple and efficient method to solve the high cost and flammability issues of PLA composites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Bio-Based Polymers)
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17 pages, 2509 KiB  
Article
Agar Biopolymer Films for Biodegradable Packaging: A Reference Dataset for Exploring the Limits of Mechanical Performance
by Valentina Hernández, Davor Ibarra, Johan F. Triana, Bastian Martínez-Soto, Matías Faúndez, Diego A. Vasco, Leonardo Gordillo, Felipe Herrera, Claudio García-Herrera and Alysia Garmulewicz
Materials 2022, 15(11), 3954; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15113954 - 01 Jun 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5707
Abstract
This article focuses on agar biopolymer films that offer promise for developing biodegradable packaging, an important solution for reducing plastics pollution. At present there is a lack of data on the mechanical performance of agar biopolymer films using a simple plasticizer. This study [...] Read more.
This article focuses on agar biopolymer films that offer promise for developing biodegradable packaging, an important solution for reducing plastics pollution. At present there is a lack of data on the mechanical performance of agar biopolymer films using a simple plasticizer. This study takes a Design of Experiments approach to analyze how agar-glycerin biopolymer films perform across a range of ingredients concentrations in terms of their strength, elasticity, and ductility. Our results demonstrate that by systematically varying the quantity of agar and glycerin, tensile properties can be achieved that are comparable to agar-based materials with more complex formulations. Not only does our study significantly broaden the amount of data available on the range of mechanical performance that can be achieved with simple agar biopolymer films, but the data can also be used to guide further optimization efforts that start with a basic formulation that performs well on certain property dimensions. We also find that select formulations have similar tensile properties to thermoplastic starch (TPS), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), and polypropylene (PP), indicating potential suitability for select packaging applications. We use our experimental dataset to train a neural network regression model that predicts the Young’s modulus, ultimate tensile strength, and elongation at break of agar biopolymer films given their composition. Our findings support the development of further data-driven design and fabrication workflows. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Bio-Based Polymers)
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