MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF BIODEGRADABLE POLYMER BLENDS AND HYBRID COMPOSITE FILLED WITH NANOCLAY AND BAMBOO POWDER

Biodegradable polymers, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), were blended and compounded with nanoclay and bamboo powder. The content of the PBS in the PLA/PBS blends was 0-40 wt%. The contents of the nanoclay and bamboo powder in the composites were 1-5 wt% and 10-40 wt%, respectively. The blends and the composites were mixed in a twin screw extruder and fabricated into specimens by hot press molding. Mechanical testing was carried out by tensile testing. From the results, the tensile properties of the PLA blends and the composites were significantly influenced by the PBS dispersed phase. Elongation and toughness of the PLA/PBS blends increased with the increasing PBS content. The maximum value was found at 70/30 of the PLA/PBS blends. The incorporation of the nanoclay and bamboo powder improved the tensile strength and Young's modulus of the hybrid composites. The optimum contents of the nanoclay and bamboo powder in the composites were 1% and 10wt%, respectively.