Abstract :
In this work, the influence of three starches
(A1, A2 and A3) on the mechanical, morphological and
thermal properties of poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) was
investigated in PCL/starch blends of 0/100, 75/25, 50/50
and 25/75 w/w%. The addition of starch to PCL
reduced the tensile stress at break, the elongation at
break and Young’s modulus. The starches with linear
chemical structures (A1 and A3) had lower values of
tensile strength and higher values of elongation at
break. Light microscopy indicated that the starches and
PCL were immiscible. Thermal analysis showed that
the 75/25, 50/50, and 25/75 w/w% blends containing
linear starches had greater crystallinity than branched
starch, an arrangement that may favor their biodegradation.
