Study and development of LDPE/starch partially biodegradable compounds

In this work it was investigated the incorporation of different starches, such as native, adipate, acetylated and cassava starch, in low-density polyethylene matrix (LDPE) to verify the possibility to obtain partially biodegradable product with the aim to decrease the plastics wastes in the environment. The starches were mixed to the LDPE using a high shearing mixer to guarantee the homogeneity of the formulations. The characterization of those compounds was done using mechanical and morphological analysis and biodegradation in activated sludge. The results indicated that the increase of the starch amount into the olefin matrix was responsible for the reduction on mechanical properties of the products, if compared with pure LDPE. It was observed by SEM that the activated sludge is a promising method to follow biodegradation. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.