Modification of PLA Properties by Process Aids and Other Additives

3 MODIFICATION OF PLA PROPERTIES BY PROCESS AIDS AND OTHER ADDITIVES 

Drying of PLA resins usually takes place in the range of 60-90°C. The required drying time is dependent on the drying temperature (Table 14.2). Amorphous pellets must be dried below the Tg ( 60 C) to prevent the resin pellets from sticking together, which can result in bridging and 

TABLE 14.2 Drying Half-Times for PLA Pellets Under —40°C Dew Point and Airflow Rate of 0.016 m /min/kg [37] 

FIGURE 14.3 Plots of molecular weight loss of PLA versus time under different environment conditions. Curves are based on the original data published by Henton et al. [15]. 

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