Effect of Poly(propylene carbonate) on Properties of Polylactic Acid-Based Composite Films.

To enrich the properties of polylactic acid (PLA)-based composite films and improve the base degradability, in this study, a certain amount of poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) was added to PLA-based composite films, and PLA/PPC-based composite films were prepared by melt blending and hot-press molding. The effects of the introduction of PPC on the composite films were analyzed through in-depth studies on mechanical properties, water vapor and oxygen transmission rates, thermal analysis, compost degradability, and bacterial inhibition properties of the composite films. When the introduction ratio coefficient of PPC was 30%, the tensile strength of the composite film increased by 19.68%, the water vapor transmission coefficient decreased by 14.43%, and the oxygen transmission coefficient decreased by 18.31% compared to that of the composite film without PPC, the cold crystallization temperature of the composite film increased gradually from 96.9 °C to 104.8 °C, and PPC improved the crystallization ability of composite film. The degradation rate of the composite film with PPC increased significantly compared to the previous one, and the degradation rate increased with the increase in the PPC content. The degradation rate was 49.85% and 46.22% faster on average than that of the composite film without PPC when the degradation was carried out over 40 and 80 days; the composite film had certain inhibition, and the maximum diameter of the inhibition circle was 2.42 cm. This study provides a strategy for the development of PLA-based biodegradable laminates, which can promote the application of PLA-based laminates in food packaging.

Comparison of Properties of Poly(Lactic Acid) Composites Prepared from Different Components of Corn Straw Fiber.

In recent years, under the pressure of resource shortage and white pollution, the development and utilization of biodegradable wood-plastic composites (WPC) has become one of the hot spots for scholars' research. Here, corn straw fiber (CSF) was chosen to reinforce a poly(lactic acid) (PLA) matrix with a mass ratio of 3:7, and the CSF/PLA composites were obtained by melt mixing. The results showed that the mechanical properties of the corn straw fiber core (CSFC) and corn straw fiber skin (CSFS) loaded PLA composites were stronger than those of the CSFS/PLA composites when the particle size of CSF was low. The tensile strength and bending strength of CSFS/CSFC/PLA are 54.08 MPa and 87.24 MPa, respectively, and the elongation at break is 4.60%. After soaking for 8 hours, the water absorption of CSF/PLA composite reached saturation. When the particle size of CSF is above 80 mesh, the saturated water absorption of the material is kept below 7%, and CSF/PLA composite has good hydrophobicity, which is mainly related to the interfacial compatibility between PLA and CSF. By observing the microstructure of the cross section of the CSF/PLA composite, the research found that the smaller the particle size of CSF, the smoother the cross section of the composite and the more unified the dispersion of CSF in PLA. Therefore, exploring the composites formed by different components of CSF and PLA can not only expand the application range of PLA, but also enhance the application value of CSF in the field of composites.

Physicochemical evolutions of starch/poly (lactic acid) composite biodegraded in real soil.

Plastic pollution is a major environmental problem and the waste disposal is a challenge in this case. Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) based biodegradable materials is one of the most attractive polymers which can fulfill the current demand. In this work, the degradation of starch/PLA composite was investigated in real soil environment. The weight loss results demonstrated that the degradation rate of PLA could be accelerated by starch. Scanning electrical microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) results showed that the samples degraded faster with the presence of starch. The mechanical strengths had an abrupt decrease for the starch/PLA composite while that of PLA only decreased in a low degree. The distribution of carboxyl group intensity and carbon atomic percent reflected the heterogeneity of biodegradation for starch/PLA composite in soil. Moreover, the variation of internal carbon atomic percent was higher than that on the surface, demonstrating that the degradation of starch/PLA composite was bulk degradation. Based on the role of starch played in starch/PLA composite and the physicochemical performance evolutions during biodegradation, it should create a scientific basis for people interested in studying the biodegradation of PLA, and provide some knowledge about controlling the biodegradation rate of PLA through adjusting the content of starch in the composite.

Poly-(lactic acid) composite films comprising carvacrol and cellulose nanocrystal-zinc oxide with synergistic antibacterial effects.

Herein, carvacrol (CRV) and modified cellulose nanocrystal-zinc oxide (CNC-ZnO) were incorporated into a poly (lactic acid) (PLA) matrix to prepare a PLA-based composite film using a simple solution casting method to achieve antimicrobial effects for application in antimicrobial food packaging. Compared with films obtained from neat PLA, the PLA@CRV20%@CNC-ZnO3% composite film shows better performance in terms of mechanical properties, ultraviolet (UV) blocking, and antimicrobial effects. The PLA composites containing CRV and 3 wt% CNC-ZnO blends exhibit improved tensile strength (21.8 MPa) and elongation at break (403.1 %) as well as excellent UV resistance. In particular, CRV and the CNC-ZnO hybrid endow the obtained PLA composite films with a synergistic antibacterial effect, resulting in good antibacterial properties for microbes, such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Aspergillus niger. The diameters of the inhibition zone of the PLA@CRV20%@CNC-ZnO3% composite films against E. coli, S. aureus, and A. niger were 4.9, 5.0, and 3.4 cm, respectively. Appling the PLA@CRV20%@CNC-ZnO3% composite film as an antibacterial food packaging material, the storage period for strawberries was considerably extended. This study provides a theoretical basis for developing new organic/inorganic composite antimicrobial film materials from PLA.

Preparation and mechanism of lightweight wood fiber/poly(lactic acid) composites.

The high density and poor thermal insulation of traditional wood-plastic composites limited the application in the field of building materials. In this paper, wood fiber (WF) and PLA were used as raw materials and azodicarbonamide was used as the foaming agent. Lightweight WF/PLA composites were prepared by the hot-pressing foaming method, aiming to obtain renewable, low-density material with high strength-to-weight ratio and thermal insulation performance. The results showed that after adding 20 % WF into PLA, the cell morphology was excellent and the cell size was uniform. The magnification reached the minimum value of 0.36 g/cm3 and the foaming magnification was 3.42 times. The impact strength and compressive strength were 3.16 kJ/m3 and 4.12 MPa, its comprehensive mechanical properties were outstanding. The thermal conductivity of foamed materials was 0.110-0.148 (W/m·K), which was significantly lower than that of unfoamed materials and common wood. Its excellent mechanical properties and thermal insulation can be suitable for application in the construction field to replace traditional wood.

Development of a Novel MR Colonography via Iron-Based Solid Lipid Nanoparticles.

PURPOSE: To develop an iron-based solid lipid nanoparticle (SLN) absorbable by the intestinal wall and assess the differential diagnostic value of intestinal lesions in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). METHODS: SLNs were prepared with the simultaneous loading of trivalent Fe ions (Fe3+), levodopa methyl ester (DM), and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). We evaluated the particle size, loading rate, encapsulation efficiency, and cytotoxicity of SLNs. The T1 contrast effects of the FeDM-FITC-SLNs and gadolinium-based contrast agent (GBCA) were compared in different mouse models: acute ulcerative colitis (AUC), chronic ulcerative colitis (CUC), colon adenocarcinoma (COAD), and normal control. MRI was performed in the same mouse with intravenous injection of GBCA on day 1 and enema of FeDM-FITC-SLNs on day 2. The signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) were compared using one-way analysis of variance. Tissues were then collected for histology. RESULTS: The average particle size of FeDM-FITC-SLN was 220 nm. The mean FeDM loading rate was 94.3%, and the encapsulation efficiency was 60.3%. The relaxivity was 4.02 mM-1·s-1. After enema with FeDM-FITC-SLNs, MRI showed the following contrast enhancement duration: AUC = COAD > normal > CUC. Confocal fluorescence microscopy confirmed that FeDM-FITC-SLNs were mainly distributed in the intestinal mucosa and tumor capsule. CONCLUSION: Iron-based SLNs are promising alternatives for contrast enhancement at T1-weighted MRI and will help in the differential diagnosis of intestinal bowel diseases (IBDs).

Preparation of effective ultraviolet shielding poly (lactic acid)/poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) degradable composite film using co-precipitation and hot-pressing method.

Biodegradable poly (lactide) (PLA) and poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) composite films were made by a co-precipitation and hot-pressing method. The property of composite films like the chemical interaction, phase morphology, mechanical properties, and thermal properties were studied. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) test manifested that there was a small amount of the transesterifications between the PBAT and PLA during hot pressing, which could improve the compatibility of the two phases. The tensile strength of the film only reduced by 7.4%, while the elongation at break was increased by 119.1% compared with PLA after adding 4%wt PBAT. The composite films showed a high Ultraviolet-visible (UV) light barrier property. The UV blocking rate of the composite after adding 4%wt PBAT was 6.95 times higher than that of pure PLA at 380 nm. The PLA/PBAT composite films with excellent thermal stability, satisfactory mechanical properties and UV-light barrier have high a possibility for an UV screening packaging application.

Preparation, characterization, and performance analysis of starch-based nanomicelles.

A novel amphiphilic starch-based polymer carrier (R-St-PEG; R = hexadecyl, St = starch, PEG = polyethylene glycol) was prepared using tapioca starch. It was then applied as an effective carrier for encapsulated drug, and used for sustained drug release. First, tapioca starch was made to react with hexadecane bromide (R16) for hydrophobic modification, and then the hydrophobically-modified tapioca starch molecules were grafted onto hydrophilic carboxyl-terminated PEG (mPEG-COOH). The drug-loading capacity and drug release behavior of R-St-PEG were systematically evaluated using curcumin as drug. The results show that the polymer has good drug-loading capacity and sustained-release properties, and it can act as an effective drug carrier. Thus, this study provides a suitable platform for preparing stable amphiphilic polymer carriers and broadens the application range of tapioca starch.

Thermal and thermo-oxidative degradation kinetics and characteristics of poly (lactic acid) and its composites.

Thermal degradation behavior and kinetics of starch/PLA composites in an inert and oxygen atmosphere were investigated by TG and TG-FTIR techniques. It is shown that the thermal degradation process can be divided into three stages, and a significant difference between thermal and thermo-oxidative degradation is the third stage in which the residual chars are further cracked for the thermo-oxidative degradation. The activation energy was calculated using the iso-conversional Flynn-Wall-Ozawa (FWO) method. The lower activation energy for thermo-oxidative degradation indicated that oxygen had an accelerated effect on thermal degradation. The variation of activation energy indicated that the decomposition of all the samples was a complex process that included at least two different mechanisms. Evolution of the evolved gaseous products with temperature was studied to understand the thermal and thermo-oxidative decomposition comprehensively. According to the TG-FTIR analysis, the gaseous products mainly contained lactide, cyclic oligomers, aldehydes, CO2, CO, and H2O.

Parallel advances in improving mechanical properties and accelerating degradation to polylactic acid.

Going up further on the basis of excellent mechanical properties and solving the long-standing shortcoming of the slow degradation rate were developed in parallel for polylactic acid (PLA). The polylactic acid/wood flour/polymethylmethacrylate (PLA/WF/PMMA) composites were prepared by melt blending used PLA as matrix, WF of diverse particle size with PMMA at 8:2 mass ratio totally filled with 20 wt%. The PLA/WF/PMMA composites were studied by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), melting index test, and universal mechanical properties test. The result shows that WF of 150 µm < particle size < 180 µm executed the optimal improvement to mechanical properties of PLA/WF/PMMA. Tensile strength, flexural modulus and Young's modulus of PLA/WF/PMMA (150-180 µm) were enhanced 10.02%, 37.21% and 32.80% in relation to neat PLA, respectively. Hydrophilic contact angle test, water absorption measurement and hydrolysis assessment were performed to the hydrolysis degradation performance of materials. Furthermore, PMMA and WF cooperatively assisted in enormously accelerating hydrolysis of PLA, eventually having a good performance. Improving mechanical properties and accelerating degradation at the same time are of great significance for expanding the application of PLA.

GSH-sensitive Pt(IV) prodrug-loaded phase-transitional nanoparticles with a hybrid lipid-polymer shell for precise theranostics against ovarian cancer.

Background: Platinum (II) (Pt(II))-based anticancer drugs dominate the chemotherapy field of ovarian cancer. However, the patient's quality of life has severely limited owing to dose-limiting toxicities and the advanced disease at the time of diagnosis. Multifunctional tumor-targeted nanosized ultrasound contrast agents (glutathione (GSH)-sensitive platinum (IV) (Pt(IV)) prodrug-loaded phase-transitional nanoparticles, Pt(IV) NP-cRGD) were developed for precise theranostics against ovarian cancer. Methods: Pt(IV) NP-cRGD were composed of a perfluorohexane (PFH) liquid core, a hybrid lipid-polymer shell with PLGA12k-PEG2k and DSPE-PEG1k-Pt(IV), and an active targeting ligand, the cRGD peptide (PLGA: poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), PEG: polyethylene glycol, DSPE: 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine, cRGD: cyclic Arg-Gly-Asp). Pt(IV), a popular alternative to Pt(II), was covalently attached to DSPE-PEG1k to form the prodrug, which fine-tuned lipophilicity and improved cellular uptake. The potential of Pt(IV) NP-cRGD as contrast agents for ultrasound (US) imaging was assessed in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, studies on the antitumor efficiency and antitumor mechanism of Pt(IV) NP-cRGD assisted by US were carried out. Results: Pt(IV) NP-cRGD exhibited strong echogenic signals and excellent echo persistence under an US field. In addition, the GSH-sensitive and US-triggered drug delivery system maximized the therapeutic effect while reducing the toxicity of chemotherapy. The mechanistic studies confirmed that Pt(IV) NP-cRGD with US consumed GSH and enhanced reactive oxy gen species (ROS) levels, which further causes mitochondria-mediated apoptosis. Conclusion: A multifunctional nanoplatform based on phase-transitional Pt(IV) NP-cRGD with US exhibited excellent echogenic signals, brilliant therapeutic efficacy and limited side effect, suggesting precise theranostics against ovarian cancer.

[Inhibitory effect of antisense oligonucleotide of integrin-linked kinase on cell proliferation of human epithelial ovarian cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the inhibitory effect of integrin-linked kinase antisense oligonucleotide (ILK-ASODN) on cell proliferation in human ovarian cancer cell line (HO8910). METHODS: We transfected ILK-ASODN into HO8910 to block ILK gene expression, measured the expression levels of integrin-linked kinase (ILK) mRNA by RT-PCR and ILK protein by western-blotting; the inhibiting effects of the transfection on HO8910 proliferation, the cell cycles, and cell apoptosis were assessed by water soluble tetrazolium-1 (WST-1) and flow cytometry (FCM). RESULTS: After transfection of ILK-ASODN, the expression levels of ILK mRNA decreased significantly in groups D, E, F being 0.307 +/- 0.011, 0.198 +/- 0.008, 0, respectively, when compared with those of the two control groups of A and B (P < 0.05). The expression levels of ILK protein of the groups D, E and F decreased significantly also, being 26.3 +/- 0.8, 20.6 +/- 0.4 and 0, respectively. HO8910 cell proliferation was inhibited significantly, and the rates of apoptosis of the groups D, E and F increased significantly, being 7.31%, 8.84% and 11.27% respectively. The cell population increased in G0/G1 phase of the groups D, E and F, being 49.25%, 56.28% and 67.61% respectively, significantly different in comparison with those of groups of A and B (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Transfection of ILK-ASODN into human ovarian cancer line inhibited cancer cell proliferation significantly.

Jointly modified mechanical properties and accelerated hydrolytic degradation of PLA by interface reinforcement of PLA-WF.

Polylactic acid (PLA), one of the most likely green and environmentally friendly materials, is an alternative to petroleum-based plastic. It still remains a challenge to increase the degradation rate and decrease the cost of PLA without compromised mechanical properties. Low cost PLA/wood flour (WF) composite was elaborately designed and fabricated with improved interface compatibility through the introducing of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). The result indicated that compared with that of neat PLA, the tensile strength and bending strength of PLA/WF/PMMA (8:2) (80 wt% of the PLA, 20 wt% of WF and PMMA (8:2)) were increase by 4.60% and 26.54% respectively. Through the hydrolysis experiments combined with the SEM analysis, the main reason for the improvement of the mechanical properties of composite materials was that PMMA makes continuous three-phase composition, and interface compatibility of PLA and WF with overly different polarity was modified. Meanwhile, the hydrolysis rate of PLA/WF/PMMA was much faster than that of PLA. Finally, there was a more significant discovery that the addition of PMMA changed material degradation mechanism, and it was why to efficiently accelerate the degradation rate of the material. This will provide a new inspiration for PLA degradation research, and a fresh perspective is to be given other materials.

Soil burial-induced chemical and thermal changes in starch/poly (lactic acid) composites.

Soil burial degradation was confirmed to be an efficient waste disposal method for the biodegradable materials with short service life, such as starch/poly (lactic acid) (PLA) composite. The biodegradation behavior about chemical and thermal properties of starch/PLA composite was analyzed by using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared microscopy (IRM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). XPS and IRM results indicated that the biodegradation of PLA occurred at the ester groups in PLA chains. XPS demonstrated the cleavage of CO linkages between glucose rings in starch. DSC and TGA results showed that the starch/PLA composite degraded faster than the pure PLA. During the soil burial degradation, the glass transition temperature of starch/PLA composite exhibited an obviously decrease while it had a slight variation for PLA. The thermal stability of starch/PLA composite shifted towards to that of PLA when they were subjected to soil burial for the same time. It is established that the starch can accelerate the degradation of PLA-based materials, which will enlarge the markets of biodegradable PLA materials used for short service life products.

Preparation of plasticized poly (lactic acid) and its influence on the properties of composite materials.

Plasticized poly (lactic acid) (PPLA) was prepared by melt blending poly (lactic acid) (PLA) with 10 wt% of poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG), with varied molecular weights range from 400 to 4000. The structure, thermal property, morphology, and surface free energy of the PPLA were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and contact angles (CA). The resulting PPLA results indicated that the introduction of PEG to the blend systems resulted in a ductile fracture, a decrease in the melt temperature (Tm) and glass transfer temperature (Tg), and an increase in the degree of crystallization (χc), which indicated an improved flexibility. In addition, the polarity of the PPLA increased and the surface free energy decreased. The resulting PPLA was subsequently used as matrix to blend with wood flour to prepare composites. The mechanical strength, melting behavior, thermal stability, and microscopy of the PPLA/wood flour composites were also evaluated. These results illustrated that the plasticized PPLA matrix was beneficial to the interfacial compatibility between the polar filler and the substrate.

Biodegradation behavior and modelling of soil burial effect on degradation rate of PLA blended with starch and wood flour.

The biodegradation behavior of Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) blended with starch and wood flour in outdoor soil was investigated comprehensively. As a result, starch provided a biological fuel for the growth of microorganisms in the soil which accelerated the degradation rate of PLA more obviously than wood flour. With the increase of starch content, the weight loss increased and the morphology exhibited more gullies and cavities. X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) analysis indicated that the variation of O/C ratio was controlled by starch biodegradation and PLA hydrolysis and they were a concomitant process. The mechanical strengths of all the blends showed similar trend and fitted a first-order exponential decay model. The model is shown in good agreement with experimental results as the correlation coefficient is higher than 0.99, and the model can support an efficient method to estimate the durability of starch/wood flour/PLA blends.

Effect of annealing on the thermal properties of poly (lactic acid)/starch blends.

A comparative study of the thermal behavior of PLA/starch blends annealed at different temperatures has been conducted. Annealing was found to be beneficial to weaken and even eliminate the enthalpy relaxation near Tg. The degree of crystallinity was evaluated by means of DSC, and the results showed that the crystallinity of the samples increased as the annealing temperatures were increased. It was observed that, during the annealing process, the disorder α (α') crystal modification tended to transform into the order α crystal modification. All of the PLA/starch blends showed a double melting behavior. With the increase of annealing temperatures, the lower Tm1 increased, while the Tm2 showed no evident change. The XRD patterns also showed that annealing was beneficial to the samples to form higher crystallinity. The TGA results indicated that the annealed samples did not show any higher thermal stability than the virgin samples. The activation energy calculated by the Flynn-Wall-Ozawa method at lower conversion degrees confirmed that the annealing slightly slowed the degradation. The activation energy did not show any dependence on the conversion degree, which indicated that there existed a complex degradation process of the PLA/starch blends. The average activation energy did not show obvious differences, indicating that the annealing treatment had little influence on the degradation activation energy.

Effects of dry method esterification of starch on the degradation characteristics of starch/polylactic acid composites.

Maleic anhydride esterified corn starch was prepared by dry method. Esterified starch/polylactic acid (PLA) biodegradable composite was produced via melt extrusion method with blending maleic anhydride esterified corn starch and PLA. The influence of the dry method esterification of starch on the degradation characteristics of starch/PLA composites was investigated by the natural aging degradation which was soil burial method. Test results of mass loss rate showed that the first 30 days of degradation was mainly starch degradation, and the degradation rate of esterified starch/PLA (ES/PLA) was slower than that of native starch/PLA (NS/PLA). Therefore, the damage degree of ES/PLA on the surface and inside was smaller than that of NS/PLA, and the infrared absorption peak intensities of C-O, C=O and C-H were stronger than that of NS/PLA. With the increasing time of soil burial degradation, the damage degree of NS/PLA and ES/PLA on the exterior and interior were gradually increased, whereas the infrared absorption peak intensities of C-O, C=O and C-H were gradually decreased. The XRD diffraction peak intensity of PLA in composites showed an increased trend at first which was then followed by a decreased one along with the increasing time of soil burial degradation, indicating that the degradation of amorphous regions of PLA was earlier than its crystalline regions. When the soil burial time was the same, the diffraction peak intensity of PLA in ES/PLA was stronger than that of NS/PLA. If the degradation time was the same, T0, Ti and residual rate of thermal decomposition of NS/PLA were larger than those of ES/PLA. The tensile strength and bending strength of composites were decreased gradually with soil burial time increasing. Both the tensile strength and bending strength of ES/PLA were stronger than those of NS/PLA.

Preparation of CMC-modified melamine resin spherical nano-phase change energy storage materials.

A novel carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-modified melamine-formaldehyde (MF) phase change capsule with excellent encapsulation was prepared by in situ polymerization. Effects of CMC on the properties of the capsules were studied by Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The results showed that the CMC-modified capsules had an average diameter of about 50nm and good uniformity. The phase change enthalpy of the capsules was increased and the cracking ratio decreased by incorporating a suitable amount of CMC. The optimum phase change enthalpy of the nanocapsules was 83.46J/g, and their paraffin content was 63.1%. The heat resistance of the capsule shells decreased after CMC modification. In addition, the nanocapsule cracking ratio of the nanocapsules was 11.0%, which is highly attractive for their application as nano phase change materials.

Preparation and characterization of dry method esterified starch/polylactic acid composite materials.

Corn starch and maleic anhydride were synthesized from a maleic anhydride esterified starch by dry method. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used for the qualitative analysis of the esterified starches. The reaction efficiency of dry method esterified starch reached 92.34%. The dry method esterified starch was blended with polylactic acid (PLA), and the mixture was melted and extruded to produce the esterified starch/polylactic acid (ES/PLA) composites. The degree of crystallinity of the ES/PLA was lower than that of the NS/PLA, indicating that the relative dependence between these two components of starch and polylactic acid was enhanced. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) indicated that the dry method esterified starch increased the two-phase interface compatibility of the composites, thereby improving the tensile strength, bending strength, and elongation at break of the ES/PLA composite. The introduction of a hydrophobic ester bond and increase in interface compatibility led to an increase in ES/PLA water resistance. Melt index determination results showed that starch esterification modification had improved the melt flow properties of starch/PLA composite material. Strain scanning also showed that the compatibility of ES/PLA was increased. While frequency scanning showed that the storage modulus and complex viscosity of ES/PLA was less than that of NS/PLA.