Mesostructure and Fracture Mechanism of PLA/PCL Blend
Details
Biodegradable PLLA/PCL polymer blend was developed to improve the fracture toughness of brittle PLLA. Fracture tests of SENB specimens were performed to evaluate the fracture toughness values, K_<IC> and G_<IC>, of neat PLLA and PLLA/PCL. It was found that K_<IC> slightly decreases due to the blending, while G_<IC> dramatically improves. Scanning electron microscopy of fracture surface and polarizing optical microscopy of crack-growth behavior were carried out to investigate the fracture mechanism of PLLA/PCL. IT was found that the primary toughening mechanism in PLLA/PCL is the formation of craze-like damage initiated from voids generated from PCL spherulites.
