Preparation and characterization of vacuum sputter silver coated PLA film

Silver-coated poly(lactide) (PLA) films were prepared by using a vacuum sputter coating method and their film properties were investigated. Smooth-surfaced flexible and free-standing silver-coated PLA films were obtained after coating for 2 min and 10 min. The silver-coated PLA film coated for 2 min was translucent, while that coated for 10 min was opaque with shiny metallic luster. The water vapor barrier and oxygen gas barrier properties decreased significantly (p < 0.05) as time of coating increased, while surface hydrophobicity increased significantly without sacrificing the tensile properties after silver-coating. Film properties, such as optical, film thickness, basis weight, thermal stability, tensile, and gas barrier properties were influenced by the coating time. Noise problem caused by brittleness of the PLA film has been partly mitigated to provide value-added application in the food packaging industry.