Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Microstructure and performance evolution of poly (l-lactic acid) during physical aging: Determinable role of molding method on β-relaxation

Researchers investigated how the manufacturing method of poly(L-lactic acid) — a biodegradable plastic relevant to microplastic pollution reduction — affects its mechanical aging behavior, finding that quenching versus cold-pressing creates different molecular network structures that determine how quickly the material becomes brittle over time.

2025 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Optimisation des mousses de PLA produites par méthode supercritique : Influence de la modification chimique et de l'incorporation de CNC sur les structures cellulaires résultantes

Researchers investigated the influence of chemical modification and cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) incorporation on the properties of polylactic acid (PLA) foams produced by supercritical CO2 foaming, motivated by the need for biodegradable alternatives to microplastic-generating petroleum-based foam materials. Chemical modification improved PLA melt elasticity and resulted in significant changes to cellular foam structure, advancing the development of biodegradable packaging foams.

2024 theses.fr (ABES)
Article Tier 2

Characteristics of Styrofoam Waste-based Membrane Through Vapor and Liquid-induced Phase Inversion Process

Researchers prepared polymeric membranes from recycled Styrofoam waste using a phase-inversion technique with either immersion or evaporation solidification, finding that the solidification method significantly influenced hydrophobicity, pore configuration, porosity, and thermal stability of the resulting membranes.

2023 Jurnal Kimia Riset 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Characterization of Biodegradable Polymers for Porous Structure: Further Steps toward Sustainable Plastics

Four biodegradable polymers -- PBAT, PBS, PHBV, and PLA -- were systematically characterized for mechanical, thermal, and porous structural properties to assess their suitability as more sustainable alternatives to conventional plastics.

2024 Polymers 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Modification of Poly(lactic acid) by the Plasticization for Application in the Packaging Industry

Researchers investigated the modification of poly(lactic acid) through plasticization to improve its mechanical properties for use in packaging industry applications as a biodegradable alternative to conventional plastics.

2021 Polymers 31 citations
Article Tier 2

ScCO2-assisted fabrication and compressive property of poly (lactic acid) foam reinforced by in-situ polytetrafluoroethylene fibrils

Researchers developed biodegradable poly(lactic acid) foam reinforced with polytetrafluoroethylene fibrils using supercritical CO2 foaming, achieving a 30% improvement in specific compressive strength and two orders of magnitude increase in storage modulus at 5 wt% PTFE content. The approach improves PLA's typically poor melt strength and slow crystallization, making it a more viable bio-based alternative to petroleum-based plastic foams.

2022 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Fabrication of biodegradable poly (lactic acid)/carbon nanotube nanocomposite foams: Significant improvement on rheological property and foamability

Researchers developed a CO2-based foaming method to fabricate ultra-low-density biodegradable polylactic acid/carbon nanotube nanocomposite foams, finding that even small additions of carbon nanotubes dramatically improved rheological properties and foamability.

2020 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 87 citations
Article Tier 2

The Optimization of Avocado-Seed-Starch-Based Degradable Plastic Synthesis with a Polylactic Acid (PLA) Blend Using Response Surface Methodology (RSM)

Researchers optimized the synthesis of biodegradable plastic from avocado seed starch, evaluating formulation variables to maximize mechanical strength, flexibility, and degradation rate for potential packaging applications.

2024 Polymers 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of the Incorporation of Nano-Sized Cellulose Formate on the End Quality of Polylactic Acid Composite Film

Researchers found that incorporating nano-sized cellulose formate fillers, including cellulose nanofibrils and nanocrystals, into polylactic acid films significantly improved mechanical strength and barrier properties while maintaining the biodegradable character of the composite, offering a path toward higher-performance sustainable packaging.

2021 Nanomaterials 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Relating Amorphous Structure to the Tear Strength of Polylactic Acid Films

The relationship between amorphous molecular structure and tear strength in polylactic acid (PLA) films was investigated, finding that the proportion of mobile amorphous regions significantly affects mechanical performance. Films with different thermal histories showed predictable differences in tear resistance. These findings guide the design of PLA bioplastic films with improved mechanical properties for packaging applications.

2022 Polymers 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Crystallization behaviors of chain extended poly (lactic acid) modified with ST‐NAB3 and its improvement for mechanical and thermal properties

Researchers modified poly(lactic acid) — a biodegradable plastic alternative to petroleum-based polymers — to improve its poor crystallization, mechanical strength, and heat resistance by adding a chain extender and nucleating agent. The resulting material performs better under real-world conditions, bringing biodegradable plastics closer to viably replacing conventional plastics that contribute to microplastic pollution.

2024 Journal of Applied Polymer Science 2 citations
Article Tier 2

About the transformation of low Tm into high Tm poly(l-lactide)s by annealing under the influence of transesterification catalysts

Researchers studied how polylactic acid (PLA) crystals transform into higher-melting forms during heating with catalysts. Understanding the crystallization behavior of biodegradable PLA plastics is important for designing materials that degrade more effectively in the environment.

2021 RSC Advances 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Optimization of Process Parameters for Fabricating Polylactic Acid Filaments Using Design of Experiments Approach

Researchers developed an automatic PLA filament extruder and used a design-of-experiments approach to optimize process parameters for recycling waste polylactic acid (PLA) from 3D printing into new filaments, demonstrating a viable circular approach to reducing PLA waste.

2021 Polymers 46 citations
Article Tier 2

The aging behavior of degradable plastic polylactic acid under the interaction of environmental factors

Researchers used response surface methodology to study how temperature, light, and humidity interact to accelerate the aging and breakdown of polylactic acid, a common biodegradable plastic. The study found that humidity had the greatest effect on PLA degradation, followed by light and temperature. Evidence indicates that even biodegradable plastics can release microplastic particles as they age under environmental conditions, posing potential ecological concerns.

2024 Environmental Geochemistry and Health 19 citations
Article Tier 2

Crystallization behaviors of chain extended poly (lactic acid) modified with ST-NAB3 and its improved mechanical and thermal properties

Researchers modified poly(lactic acid) (PLA) with a styrene-acrylonitrile-glycidyl methacrylate chain extender (SAG) and an octamethylenedicarboxylic dibenzoylhydrazide nucleating agent (ST-NAB3) to improve its crystallization, mechanical properties, and thermal resistance as a biodegradable alternative to petroleum-based single-use plastics. The modifications significantly enhanced PLA crystallinity and mechanical performance, supporting its use in disposable packaging and tableware applications.

2024 Research Square (Research Square)
Article Tier 2

Acoustic and thermal characterization of a novel sustainable material incorporating recycled microplastic waste

Researchers created a new eco-friendly foam material by embedding recovered marine microplastics into a bio-based matrix, producing an open-cell insulating material with strong acoustic and thermal properties. The innovation offers a potential path to upcycle hard-to-recycle mixed marine plastic waste into useful building and industrial insulation products.

2021 Sustainable materials and technologies 52 citations
Article Tier 2

Methodology development: evaluation of structural, thermal, and mechanical properties of poly(lactic acid)/poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) blends for biodegradable mulch

Researchers developed a methodology for formulating and characterizing biodegradable PLA/PBAT mulch films as alternatives to conventional polyethylene mulch that contributes to microplastic pollution in agriculture. The proposed approach covers scalable formulation, processing, and comprehensive characterization aligned with regulatory guidelines and industry standards for biodegradable mulch performance.

2025 Polymer Bulletin
Article Tier 2

ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ БІОРОЗКЛАДНИХ ПОЛІМЕРІВ ПРИ ВИГОТОВЛЕННІ НЕКТАНИХ ФІЛЬТРУВАЛЬНИХ МАТЕРІАЛІВ

Researchers successfully produced nonwoven filter materials from polylactic acid (PLA) using melt-blown technology originally designed for polypropylene, finding that PLA fibers had a 10% smaller average diameter and similar filtration performance to PP materials. This is relevant to microplastic research because biodegradable PLA-based filters could replace conventional plastic filter materials that themselves generate microplastic pollution.

2023 Technologies and Engineering
Article Tier 2

Bio-based foams with low density and thermal conductivity through ethyl cellulose and SiO2 stabilized Pickering emulsion templating

Researchers developed fully bio-based foams using ethyl cellulose and SiO2 to stabilize Pickering emulsions as a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based plastic foams that shed microplastics. Optimized curing conditions (80°C, 3h, 3% benzoyl peroxide) produced low-density, low-thermal-conductivity porous foams with potential to replace conventional plastic foams in insulation and packaging.

2025 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Agar Biopolymer Films for Biodegradable Packaging: A Reference Dataset for Exploring the Limits of Mechanical Performance

Researchers developed a reference dataset for agar biopolymer films as biodegradable packaging alternatives, systematically testing mechanical performance with different plasticizer concentrations and providing a design-of-experiments framework to help optimize film properties for practical packaging applications.

2022 Materials 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Poly(lactic acid) nanoplastics through laser ablation: establishing a reference model for mimicking biobased nanoplastics in aquatic environments

PLA (polylactic acid) nanoplastics were fabricated via laser ablation to create a reference model for studying biobased nanoplastics in aquatic environments, with the resulting particles sharing surface chemistry characteristics with environmentally degraded PLA debris.

2025 Environmental Science Nano 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Iced block method: An efficient method for preparation of micro-sized expanded polystyrene foams

Researchers developed a new method for producing micro-sized expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam particles in the lab, enabling better-controlled experiments on EPS microplastic toxicity and environmental behavior. EPS foam is widely found in the environment but has been understudied compared to other microplastic types.

2020 Environmental Pollution 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of molecular weight on the properties and structure of biodegradable Poly-lactic acid melt-blown nonwovens

Researchers produced polylactic acid biodegradable nonwoven fabrics by varying the polymer's molecular weight, finding that lower molecular weight PLA crystallized more readily and formed finer fibers. Higher molecular weight PLA produced thicker, more water-resistant fibers with different mechanical properties.

2023 Research Square (Research Square)
Article Tier 2

Optimisation of Process Parameters to Maximise the Oil Yield from Pyrolysis of Mixed Waste Plastics

Researchers optimized the process parameters for thermal pyrolysis of mixed waste plastics to maximize oil yield from HDPE, polypropylene, and polystyrene. The study used response surface methodology to identify ideal conditions for converting plastic waste into pyrolytic oil, supporting chemical recycling as a strategy to reduce plastic pollution.

2024 Sustainability 18 citations