Polylactide properties

Dorgan, J. R., Lehermeier, H. J., Palade, L. I. Cicero, J. (2001). Polylactides Properties and prospects of an environmentally benign plastic from renewable resources. Macromolecular Symposia 175 55-66. 

Polylactide is the generaUy accepted term for highly polymeric poly(lactic acid)s. Such polymers are usuaUy produced by polymerization of dilactide the polymerization of lactic acid as such does not produce high molecular weight polymers. The polymers produced from the enantiomeric lactides are highly crystalline, whereas those from the meso lactide are generaUy amorphous. UsuaUy dilactide from L-lactic acid is preferred as a polymerization feedstock because of the avaUabUity of L-lactic acid by fermentation and for the desirable properties of the polymers for various appUcations (1,25). 

Jacobsen, S. and Fritz, H.G. 1999. Plasticizing polylactide, the effect of different plasticizers on the mechanical properties. Polymer Engineering and Science 39 1303-1310. 

Takagi, Y., Yasuda, R., Yamaoka, M. and Yamane, T. 2004. Morphologies and mechanical properties of polylactide blends with medium chain length poly(3-hydroxyalkanoate) and chemically modified poly(3-hydroxyalkanoate). Journal of Applied Polymer Science 93 2363-2369. 

Bioerodible polymers offer a unique combination of properties that can be tailored to suit nearly any controlled drug delivery application. By far the most common bioerodible polymers employed for biomedical applications are polyesters and polyethers (e.g., polyethylene glycol), polylactide, polyglycolide and their copolymers). These polymers are biocompatible, have good mechanical properties, and have been used in... 

Figure 6 (Top) General structure of Polyphosphoesters. R and R can be varied to obtain polymers with varied physicochemical properties ranging from gels, to elastomers, to amorphous polymer particles. (Bottom) Example structure of a polylactide-co-ethylphosphate copolymer.

The most efficient way of preparing polylactides is ROP by coordination initiators [132]. This method usually allows a controlled synthesis leading to quite a narrow MWD. Polymerization of the different stereoforms results in materials with different properties. The polymers derived from the pure L-FA or D-FA... 

Abstract. This paper reviews the degradation behavior of aliphatic polyesters of current interest, including polylactide, polycaprolactone, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) and their copolymers. Special focus is given to degradation products formed in different abiotic and biotic environments. The influence of processing and processing additives on the properties and degradation behavior is also briefly discussed. 

S. S. Ray, K. Yamada, M. Okamoto, and K. Ueda, New polylactide-layered silicate nanocomposites. 2. Concurrent improvements of material properties, biodegradability and melt rheology, Polymer 44, 857—866 (2003). 

Solarski, S., Mahjoubi, F., Ferreira, M., Devaux, E., Bachelet, P, Bourbigot, S., Delobel, R., Murariu, M., Da Silva Ferreira, A., Alexandre, M., Degee, P, and Dubois, P. 2007. (Plasticized) Polylactide/ clay nanocomposite textile Thermal, mechanical, shrinkage and fire properties. J. Mater. Sci., 42(13) 5105-5117. 

Keywords biodegradable, biobased, polyester, polylactide, mechanical properties, dispersion, environmentally friendly. 

It is clear that green polymers, as defined by their biodegradability, are almost exclusively biopolymers. The major classes of biopolymer of interest here are proteins and polysaccharides, naturally occurring biopolymers, and these are subdivided into various sub-classes, with different applications, as described above. Other polymers of interest are the bacterial polyesters and polylactides. All of these polymers have the potential to be processed into new materials, but clearly not all of these will have either attractive properties or be economically viable materials. 

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