Blends of modified starch and degraded PBAT
Keywords: blends; cross-linking; potato starch; poly (butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate)
The objective of this work was to recover the properties of PBAT degraded (after 1800 days of storage – PBAT d), by preparing blends by extrusion with the addition of chemically modified starch (cross-linking) (Cm-TPS), which were characterized. Different percentage of Cm-TPS and PBAT d (50:50%, 60:40%, 70:30%). were mixed in order to obtain by extrusion the film blends samples (PBAT d: Cm-TPS 50:50, PBAT d: Cm-TPS 60:40, PBAT d: Cm-TPS 70:30). The incorporation of Cm-TPS modified considerably the mechanical properties, making the PBAT d much stiffer and consequently a higher Young Modulus. Regarding sensitivity to water, it was a observed a reduction of hydrophilicity and therefore a falloff in the CA (Contact Angle) was observed when compared to the PBAT d. Thermal behavior did not significantly change with the addition of Cm-TPS.