The effect of temperature and water absorption on enzymatic degradation of starch / polyvinyl alcohol blend film by α-Amylase

Thermoplastic starch (TPS) materials present several advantages to the plastic industry and when blended with other materials they can exhibit improved mechanical and moisture sensitivity properties compared to pure TPS materials. Further investigations on TPS: PVA blends are of particular interest due to their excellent compatibility and improved properties such as tensile strength, elongation, toughness and processability, predominantly due to an improvement in melt strength compared to pure TPS material. The aims of the study were to investigate the effect of varying polyvinyl alcohol content within the TPS blends on the rate and extent of starch enzymatic hydrolysis using enzyme alpha-amylase. Analyses the enzymatic degradation behavior of poly(vinyl alcohol) with starch was based on the determinations of Weight loss and the reducing sugars. The degraded residues have been examined by FT-IR spectroscopy and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM).