Microstructure and nonisothermal cold crystallization of PLA composites based on silver nanoparticles and nanocrystalline cellulose

Poly(lactic acid) (PIA) based high performance nanocomposites, were prepared using an innovative combination of nanocrystalline cellulose and silver nanoparticles. Binary and ternary systems were prepared by solvent casting process and their morphological, mechanical and thermal responses were investigated. Pristine (CNC) and surfactant modified cellulose nanocrystals (s-CNC) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles were used, and the effect of cellulose crystal nano-dimension, cellulose modification, and the combination of cellulose nanostructures with silver nanoparticles, was investigated. The important industrial problem of slow crystallization of PIA was addressed by the use of cellulose nanocrystals as biobased nucleating agents and the nonisothermal cold crystallization behaviour of reinforced binary and ternary systems was studied. The presence of surfactant on the nanocrystal surface favoured the dispersion of CNC in the PLA matrix while the thermal investigations and the nonisothermal crystallization studies underlined the ability of s-CNC to act as nucleation agent in both binary and ternary nanocomposites. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.