Thermal stabilization of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) by poly(glycidyl methacrylate)

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)/poly(glycidyl methacrylate) (PGMA) blends with the PGMA content up to 30 wt % were prepared by a solution-precipitation procedure. The thermal decomposition of PHB/PGMA blends was studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The thermograms of PHB/PGMA blends contained a two-step degradation process, while that of pure PHB sample exhibited only one-step degradation process. This degradation behavior of PHB/PGMA blends, which have a higher thermal stability as measured by maximum decomposition temperature or residual weight after isothermal degradation for 1 h, is probably due to crosslinking reactions of the epoxide groups in the PGMA component with the carboxyl chain ends of PHB fragments during the degradation process, and the occurrence of such reactions can be assigned to the exothermic peaks in their DTA thermograms. An isothermal study of these blends at 200-250degreesC for 1 h indicated that the residual weight was directly correlated with the amount of epoxide groups in the PHB/PGMA blends. 2002 John Wiley Sons, Inc.