A biodegradable polylactic acid–polybutylene adipate terephthalate <scp>–</scp> starch polymer blend for geotextile applications

Abstract Geotextiles are typically used to stabilize steep earthen structures to prevent landslides. Usually, such geotextiles are made from petrol‐based polymers (such as polypropylene), but the use of biodegradable geotextiles seems to have specific benefits. Therefore, the present work investigates the mechanical and physicochemical properties of special polymer blends, made from polylactic acid, polybutylene adipate terephthalate and starch. These polymers are receiving increasing attention from industry due to their biodegradability properties and their possibility of economic production. The polymers were mixed with a laboratory extruder and the received homogeneity of the blends was characterized by SEM investigations. The ratio of the different polymers in these blends was varied to understand the relationship between the composition of the blends and the important properties for use in geotextiles. The size of the embedded particles was investigated with SEM and its relation to different mechanical properties was analyzed. The mechanical and viscoelastic properties of the prepared blends were analyzed with quasi‐static tensile testing, dynamic mechanical analysis and rheology measurements. In addition, the advanced nanoIR‐AFM technique was used to characterize the different prepared polymer blends. © 2025 The Author(s). Polymer International published by John Wiley &amp; Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.