Physico-Chemical, Rheological, and Antiviral Properties of Poly(butylene succinate) Biocomposites with Terpene—Hydrophobized Montmorillonite

The aim of the work was to obtain poly(butylene succinate)-a PBS biocomposite material with an addition of natural sodium montmorillonite (Na-MMT) modified with two selected terpenes: pinene (P) and limonene (L) or their mixture (PL)-and examine their physico-chemical, rheological, and antiviral properties. Na-MMT was effectively hydrophobized and intercalated (confirmed with FTIR, TGA, and XRD analysis results) with the terpenes via the solventless method. The materials were obtained via extrusion, and the films were formed using thermo-compression molding. The addition of the fillers slightly increased mechanical properties, but barrier properties towards oxygen and water vapor were significantly improved (OTR from 52 to 28 cm³/m²∙24 h and WVTR 21 to 11 g/m²∙24 h for PBS and composite, respectively) without alteration of polymer morphology (SEM, XRD, FTIR) or thermal and thermomechanical properties, despite high filler content (10 wt%) in the polymer matrix. Surface contact angle values of PBS/M, PBS/M-L, and PBS/M-PL exhibited antiviral properties and were tested using Φ6 bacteriophage. The composites can be used for materials in medical and food packaging applications.