Side chains affect the melt processing and stretchability of arabinoxylan biomass-based thermoplastic films
Journal article, 2022

Hydrophobization of hemicellulose causes melt processing and makes them stretchable thermoplastics. Understanding how native and/or appended side chains in various hemicelluloses after chemical modification affect melt processing and material properties can help in the development of products for film packaging and substrates for stretchable electronics applications. Herein, we describe a one-step and two-step strategy for the fabrication of flexible and stretchable thermoplastics prepared by compression molding of two structurally different arabinoxylans (AX). For one-step synthesis, the n-butyl glycidyl ether epoxide ring was opened to the hydroxyl group, resulting in the introduction of alkoxide side chains. The first step in the two-step synthesis was periodate oxidation. Because the melt processability for AXs having low arabinose to xylose ratio (araf/xylp<0.5) have been limited, two structurally distinct AXs extracted from wheat bran (AXWB, araf/xylp = 3/4) and barley husk (AXBH, araf/xylp = 1/4) were used to investigate the effect of araf/xylp and hydrophobization on the melt processability and properties of the final material. Melt compression processability was achieved in AXBH derived samples. DSC and DMA confirmed that the thermoplastics derived from AXWB and AXBH had dual and single glass transition (Tg) characteristics, respectively, but the thermoplastics derived from AXBH had lower stretchability (maximum 160%) compared to the AXWB samples (maximum 300%). Higher araf/xylp values, and thus longer alkoxide side chains in AXWB-derived thermoplastics, explain the stretchability differences.

Melt processing

Films

Side-chain

Biomass

Themoplastic

Author

Parveen Kumar Deralia

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Amit Kumar Sonker

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Anja Lund

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Anette Larsson

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Anna Ström

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Gunnar Westman

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Chemosphere

0045-6535 (ISSN) 18791298 (eISSN)

Vol. 294 133618

Subject Categories

Polymer Chemistry

Polymer Technologies

Materials Chemistry

DOI

10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133618

PubMed

35066072

More information

Latest update

1/25/2023