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Hydrolytic Degradation of Polylactide in Distilled Water and Seawater

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Abstract

In the work, the effect of 120-day exposure to distilled water and seawater at 23°C on the structure and properties of polylactide was studied. It was found that the melting and glass transition temperature of polylactide decreased by 2°C in distilled water, while the crystallinity degree increased by 9 and 5% in distilled water and in seawater, respectively. Atomic force microscopy revealed pores defects with a diameter of 150–200 and 170–230 μm after exposure to seawater and distilled water, respectively. Elongation and tensile strength at break were significantly reduced during the hydrolytic degradation of polylactide.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors are grateful to NT-MDT Spectrum Instruments (Moscow) and S.I. Nesterov for their help in performing experiments.

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  1. Emanuel Institute of Biochemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119334, Moscow, Russia

    Yu. V. Tertyshnaya & A. A. Popov

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  1. Yu. V. Tertyshnaya
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  2. A. A. Popov
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Correspondence to Yu. V. Tertyshnaya.

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Translated by D. Kharitonov

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Tertyshnaya, Y.V., Popov, A.A. Hydrolytic Degradation of Polylactide in Distilled Water and Seawater. Polym. Sci. Ser. D 13, 306–310 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1995421220030211

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1995421220030211

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