Effect of degree of saponification on properties of films obtained from PVA/NaCl/H2O system

Properties of the film obtained from the solution of atactic-polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/NaCl/H2O system were investigated through changing the degree of saponification (DS) and NaCl concentration. The films had a higher crystallinity as well as a higher draw ratio than pure PVA film. Maximum values of degree of crystallinity and draw ratio of the films were 38.5% and 17.8, respectively. The highest tensile modulus of the films was at DS 99.05 mol% and NaCl concentration 2 wt.%. These results indicated that the NaCl concentration control has a beneficial effect on properties upgrade of PVA film, but the DS control was effective in control of degree of crystallinity. C 2006 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.