Optimizing film mechanical and water contact angle properties via PLA/starch/lecithin concentrations
Taofeek Mukaila, Adewale Adeniyi, Ibrahim Bello, Niloy Chandra Sarker, Ewumbua Monono, Ademola Hammed
Abstract
The optimization of mechanical property and water contact angle of PLA/starch/lecithin film was conducted using response surface methodology. The tensile strength, Young's modulus and water contact angle of PLA/starch/lecithin film ranged from 0.44 ± 0.21–7.18 ± 0.57 MPa, 133.78 ± 33.7–775.57 ± 85.44 MPa and 17.71 ± 1.93–59.41 ± 28 (o), respectively. The amount of PLA and starch significantly impacts tensile strength and Young's modulus. Unlike starch, increasing PLA in the film formulation increases tensile strength and Young's modulus. The PLA-lecithin interaction decreases the film tensile strength and Young's modulus. The film water contact angle is statistically impacted by the PLA/starch interaction and quadratic term of lecithin. The adjusted R-square and p-value of each of the response ANOVA result indicates that the model quite captures the behavior of the responses. The response 2D plots also provide more insight into the variable behavior on the resulting response, making the response surface methodology a tool to design, develop and optimize PLA-based films.