Polylactide/Modified Cellulose– and Bentonite/Kaolin Clay–Based Biodegradable Materials: Physical–Chemical, Textural, and Thermal Characterizations

ABSTRACT This work presents the results of studies on obtaining biodegradable materials based on PLA/OLA‐g‐cellulose/bentonite/kaolin. It was shown that bioplastic materials can be obtained by adding up to 15% by weight bentonite, kaolin, and their mixtures in equal amounts to PLA/OLA‐g‐cellulose 80:20 samples. The physicochemical properties of the samples were studied by FTIR, XRD, SEM, TGA, and DSC methods. Their hydrophilic properties were checked by optical determination of contact angles. The results of FTIR analysis revealed that strong interactions between polymer macromolecules and the mineral component occurred in PLA/OLA‐g‐cell composite materials. The results of thermal analysis showed that the addition of kaolin mineral facilitated the decomposition of the samples, and the components in the kaolin mineral played a catalytic role in this process. The DSC method revealed that the materials obtained by adding 10% kaolin to the samples, as well as 5% bentonite + 5% kaolin, have a higher proportion of free space, and the glass transition temperature is 25°С lower than that of other samples. When examining the textural and other physicochemical properties of the materials, it was found that the introduction of minerals in their composition in an amount of 10% or more leads to a deterioration in the textural properties, that is, to a deterioration in the mutual adhesion of the components. It was shown that the introduction of minerals into the composition of the materials increases their hydrophilicity. These bioplastic materials can be used as secondary packaging materials for medicines, primary packaging materials for agricultural products, as they are biocompatible.