UHMWPE-Assisted Melt Strength Enhancement of Recycled PLA for Lightweight Foaming.

ABSTRACT: Increased utilization of biodegradable polymers to achieve sustainability and decrease the carbon footprint is connected with a necessity to find an effective way of their reutilization. Polylactic acid (PLA), and generally all biodegradable polymers, undergoes significant degradation during reprocessing cycles, leading to inferior products when compared with the original material. Here, ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was incorporated as a reinforcing phase to create a polymer-polymer composite capable of restoring and enhancing the melt strength of recycled PLA. While recycled PLA lost melt strength during reprocessing, limiting its foamability, the UHMWPE/PLA composites exhibited up to a 5.3-fold increase in melt strength, enabling stable cell growth and expansion durin

SUBMITTER: Vilem R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12903422 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature