Development of PLA/CS/ZnO nanocomposites and optimization its mechanical, thermal and water absorption properties

The purpose of this work is to improve the mechanical, thermal and water absorption properties of the nanocomposites (PLA/CS/Zno NPs). Although a number of studies have been carried on physical, mechanical and morphological properties of PLA/CS blend. However, no single research has been devoted to the blending of PLA/CS/ZnO NPs and its mechanical properties and morphological characterization. Basically; the bonding between PLA and CS is very weak, hence the current study is carried out to improve the strength of bonding by incorporating ZnO NPs; thus advancing the overall quality (mechanical, thermal and water absorption properties) of the composites (PLA/CS/ZnO NPs). The incorporating effect of ZnO NPs on the properties of PLA/CS is investigated in terms of structural (FTIR and XRD analysis), thermal (TGA analysis) and mechanical (tensile strength) analysis. The mechanical properties of the composites are improved with the addition of ZnO NPs into the PLA/CS matrix. Nevertheless, the tensile strength, modulus, and elongation at break increased up to 2 wt% of ZnO NPs loading but decreased when the ZnO NPs content is increased up 3 wt%. The results obtained in this work can be used towards environmental-friendly casing material.