Boron Nitride reinforced polylactic acid composites film for packaging: Preparation and properties

Biopolymer composites obtained from renewable resources based polymers and inorganic materials are of potential interest owing to bioactivity, biodegradability and other superior properties. In the present study polylactic acid (PLA) samples containing 0-4 wt% of ultrasonically exfoliated Boron Nitride (BN) were prepared by solvent casting method. To have an insight into the structure of the PLA/BN composites, phase morphologies were studied using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). SEM images showed aggregation of BN at 4 wt% of loading in the composite. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and tensile testing were carried out to characterize the thermal and mechanical properties of the prepared composites. The optimum tensile strength of 28.5 MPa was obtained for 2 wt% of PLA/BN composite. This corresponds to an increase of about 132% as compared to PLA.