Investigation on the Mechanical and Thermal Properties of PLA/Calcium Silicate Biocomposites for Injection Molding Applications

In this study the influence of wollastonite (calcium silicate) on the mechanical and thermal properties of polylactic acid (PLA) biocomposites was investigated. The PLA/wollastonite biocomposites was prepared by melt blending technique. The interaction of wollastonite with PLA matrix was analyzed by Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy. The mechanical properties such as tensile strength, percentage of elongation at break, tensile modulus, flexural strength, impact strength was determined. The thermal properties such as thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry were analyzed for the biocomposites. The PLA/wollastonite biocomposites exhibits high mechanical and thermal performance than the neat PLA. The biocomposites were also investigated through scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs to examine the adhesion between PLA and wollastonite. In addition, the results of SEM acquired are in good agreement with the data resulted from FTIR and impact strength of the biocomposites. The biocomposites shows improvement in crystallization and thermal stability than that of neat PLA and is suitable for melt processing and fabrication of injection molded products.