Melting Processing of Biodegradable Cellulose Diacetate/Starch Composites

Natural polymers and their derivatives are attracting increasing interest as promising biodegradable materials that can meet the environmental and recycling demands from society. This study prepared biodegradable composites of cellulose diacetate and starch, and examined their physical and thermal properties. In addition, the morphology of the composites was examined by scanning electron microscopy. For melt processing, epoxidized soybean oil, as a lubricant, and triacetine, as a plasticizer, were added to the composites. The optimal conditions for the preparation of the biodegradable composites were determined. Increasing the amount of starch in the composites resulted in further enhancement of the processability of cellulose diacetate. The tensile strength and Young's modulus decreased, and the amount of elongation and T_g value increased with increasing amount of starch.