Wu Change, Zhang Tianwei, Liang Jiaxin, Yin Jingyao, Xiao Min, Han Dongmei, Huang Sheng, Wang Shuanjin, Meng Yuezhong
The Key Laboratory of Low-Carbon Chemistry & Energy Conservation of Guangdong Province/State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
Nanomaterials (Basel). 2024 Jun 29;14(13):1120. doi: 10.3390/nano14131120.
Poly(propylene carbonate-co-phthalate) (PPC-P) is an amorphous copolymer of aliphatic polycarbonate and aromatic polyester; it possesses good biodegradability, superior mechanical performances, high thermal properties, and excellent affinity with CO. Hence, we fabricate PPC-P foams in an autoclave by using subcritical CO as a physical blowing agent. Both saturation pressure and foaming temperature affect the foaming behaviors of PPC-P, including CO adsorption and desorption performance, foaming ratio, cell size, porosity, cell density, and nucleation density, which are investigated in this research. Moreover, the low-cost PPC-P/nano-CaCO and PPC-P/starch composites are prepared and foamed using the same procedure. The obtained PPC-P-based foams show ultra-high expansion ratio and refined microcellular structures simultaneously. Besides, nano-CaCO can effectively improve PPC-P's rheological properties and foamability. In addition, the introduction of starch into PPC-P can lead to a large number of open cells. Beyond all doubt, this work can certainly provide both a kind of new biodegradable PPC-P-based foam materials and an economic methodology to make biodegradable plastic foams. These foams are potentially applicable in the packaging, transportation, and food industry.
聚(碳酸亚丙酯 - 共 - 邻苯二甲酸酯)(PPC - P)是一种脂肪族聚碳酸酯和芳香族聚酯的无定形共聚物;它具有良好的生物降解性、优异的机械性能、高热性能以及与CO的良好亲和性。因此,我们在高压釜中使用亚临界CO作为物理发泡剂来制备PPC - P泡沫。饱和压力和发泡温度都会影响PPC - P的发泡行为,包括CO吸附和解吸性能、发泡倍率、泡孔尺寸、孔隙率、泡孔密度和成核密度,本研究对这些进行了考察。此外,制备了低成本的PPC - P/纳米CaCO₃和PPC - P/淀粉复合材料,并采用相同的工艺进行发泡。所获得的基于PPC - P的泡沫同时展现出超高的膨胀倍率和精细的微孔结构。此外,纳米CaCO₃能有效改善PPC - P的流变性能和发泡性。另外,将淀粉引入PPC - P会导致大量开孔。毫无疑问,这项工作肯定能提供一种新型的基于PPC - P的可生物降解泡沫材料以及一种制备可生物降解塑料泡沫的经济方法。这些泡沫在包装、运输和食品工业中具有潜在的应用价值。