Preparation, characterization, and properties of TiO ₂ /PLA nanocomposites by in situ polymerization

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In situ polymerization method was used to prepare TiO 2 /polylactide (PLA) nanocomposites with different contents of TiO 2 in this work. The size of the organically modified TiO 2 particles was investigated by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) shows that nano‐TiO 2 particles disperse in the PLA evenly when the content of TiO 2 is low (less than 3 wt%). The differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), thermogravimetry analysis (TGA), and tensile test were used to study the thermal and mechanical properties of the composites. Results show that both the thermal and mechanical properties are markedly improved when the content of TiO 2 is 3 wt%. UV light irradiation and solution degradation experiment show that degradation of the composites is higher when the content of TiO 2 increases and due to the introduction of TiO 2 particles in the nanocomposites, the TiO 2 /PLA nanocomposites exhibit remarkable bacteriostasic activity. POLYM. COMPOS., 2009.