Morphology and rheology on the blends of PLA/CMPS

The rheological behaviors and morphologies of polylactide (PLA) and chemically modified plasticized starch (CMPS) blends were investigated. For this study, oscillatory shear flow measurements of the PLA, CMPS and their blends were performed. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) study was also conducted on the extracted extrudates of the blends. The morphology of the blend changed in relation to the composition: sphere-shaped CMPS disperse/continuous PLA, rod-like deformed CMPS phase/continuous PLA, a co-continuous structure with bridged CMPS long rods and PLA dispersed/continuous CMPS. The composition of the phase inversion could be estimated and closely coincided from the observed morphology experimental results. The rheological behavior of the blends, from oscillatory measurements, was found to vary in relation to the composition, and reflected the morphologies of the blends. PLA showed Newtonian flow behavior, while CMPS showed strong shear thinning behavior. The relationships between the morphology and rheological properties were observed in detail.