Mechanical, structural and thermal properties of Ag–Cu and ZnO reinforced polylactide nanocomposite films.

Plasticized polylactic acid (PLA) based nanocomposite films were prepared by incorporating polyethylene glycol (PEG) and two selected nanoparticles (NPs) [silver–copper (Ag–Cu) alloy (<100 nm) and zinc oxide (ZnO) (<50 and <100 nm)] through solvent casting method. Incorporation of Ag–Cu alloy into the PLA/PEG matrix increased the glass transition temperature ( T g ) significantly. The crystallinity of the nanocomposites (NCs) was significantly influenced by NP incorporation as evidenced from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The PLA nanocomposite reinforced with NPs exhibited much higher tensile strength than that of PLA/PEG blend. Melt rheology of NCs exhibited a shear-thinning behavior. The mechanical property drastically reduced with a loading of NPs, which is associated with degradation of PLA. SEM micrographs exhibited that both Ag–Cu alloy and ZnO NPs were dispersed well in the PLA film matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]