Negative effect of clay fillers on the polyvinyl alcohol biodegradation: technical note

Abstract

This work focuses on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) biodegradation in the presence of mineral clays in an aqueous aerobic environment. PVA with a degree of hydrolysis of 88% and 72% was used for the experiments. The selected group of mineral clays (nanofillers for polymers) of montmorillonite (MMT) Cloisite (R) Na+; organo-modified montmorillonite (OMMT) Cloisite (R) 20A, Cloisite (R) 30B; waste kaolin; kaolin; and zeolites were prepared by synthesis of the aforementioned kaolins. The level of biodegradation was measured using a respirometer, Micro-Oxymax, and evaluated according to CO2 production. Results of this test indicate a negative effect on PVA biodegradability in the presence of MMT Cloisite (R) Na+ and Cloisite (R) 30B. It has been found that PVA biodegradability in the presence of no adapted inoculum was adversely affected by the biocidal effects of the organic modifier of Cloisite (R) 30B. In this case, PVA 88-8 biodegradation decreased by 71% and PVA 72-10 biodegradation dropped by 58%. Furthermore, the sorption of PVA on the Cloisite (R) Na+ in the range of 40%-45% was demonstrated in the following research.