Comparative effects of organic and inorganic bio-fillers on the hydrophobicity of polylactic acid

Abraham K. Aworinde; Samson O. Adeosun; Festus A. Oyawale; Esther T. Akinlabi; Stephen A. Akinlabi

Results in Engineering (Mar 2020)

Comparative effects of organic and inorganic bio-fillers on the hydrophobicity of polylactic acid

Abraham K. Aworinde,
Samson O. Adeosun,
Festus A. Oyawale,
Esther T. Akinlabi,
Stephen A. Akinlabi

Affiliations

Abraham K. Aworinde: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria; Corresponding author.
Samson O. Adeosun: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria; Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Department, University of Lagos, Nigeria
Festus A. Oyawale: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria
Esther T. Akinlabi: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria; Mechanical Engineering Science Department, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Stephen A. Akinlabi: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria; Mechanical Engineering Science Department, University of Johannesburg, South Africa

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 5

Abstract

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The use of Polylactic acid (PLA) has been limited in the biomedical field because of its slow degradation profile which is traceable to its degree of hydrophobicity. In this work, 16.67 wt. % of chitosan (Ch), chitin (Ct) and titanium (Ti-6Al-2Sn-2Mo-2Cr-0.25Si) (Ti) powders weremelt blended with PLA and the resulting composites examined using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Chitosan was found to reduce the hydrophobic peak due to δs(CH3) in PLA by 13.92%, chitin by 10.65% and titanium by 8.04%. Summarily, the organic bio-fillers produced more hydrophilic PLA composites than the inorganic filler. The percentage reduction in hydrophobicity renders the developed composites more suitable for orthopaedic applications. Keywords: Melt-blending, Organic Bio-filler, Methyl Group, Hydrophobicity of PLA

Published in Results in Engineering

ISSN: 2590-1230 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Technology
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/results-in-engineering

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