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Recent Advances in the Investigation of Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) Nanocomposites: Incorporation of Various Nanofillers and their Properties and Applications

Polymers 2023 210 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 60 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Nikolaos D. Bikiaris, Nikolaos D. Bikiaris, Ioanna Koumentakou, Christina Samiotaki, Nikolaos D. Bikiaris, Despoina Meimaroglou, Nikolaos D. Bikiaris, Despoina Meimaroglou, Despoina Varytimidou, Despoina Varytimidou, Anastasia Karatza, Anastasia Karatza, Zisimos Kalantzis, Zisimos Kalantzis, Magdalini Roussou, Magdalini Roussou, George Z. Papageorgiou Rizos D. Bikiaris, George Z. Papageorgiou

Summary

This review covers recent advances in poly(lactic acid) or PLA, a compostable bioplastic that could replace fossil-fuel-based plastics. Researchers examined how adding various nanofillers can overcome PLA's limitations, such as low heat resistance and slow crystallization, making it suitable for a wider range of applications. The findings suggest that PLA nanocomposites represent a viable path toward reducing reliance on conventional plastics across multiple industries.

Polymers

Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is considered the most promising biobased substitute for fossil-derived polymers due to its compostability, biocompatibility, renewability, and good thermomechanical properties. However, PLA suffers from several shortcomings, such as low heat distortion temperature, thermal resistance, and rate of crystallization, whereas some other specific properties, i.e., flame retardancy, anti-UV, antibacterial or barrier properties, antistatic to conductive electrical characteristics, etc., are required by different end-use sectors. The addition of different nanofillers represents an attractive way to develop and enhance the properties of neat PLA. Numerous nanofillers with different architectures and properties have been investigated, with satisfactory achievements, in the design of PLA nanocomposites. This review paper overviews the current advances in the synthetic routes of PLA nanocomposites, the imparted properties of each nano-additive, as well as the numerous applications of PLA nanocomposites in various industrial fields.

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