A Short Review on the Synthesis of Polylactic Acid by Reactive Extrusion and Static Mixing Reaction Techniques

Polylactic acid (PLA) is one of the most attractive biodegradable polymers, but the large-scale production of PLA in most countries is still in its infancy. This review begins with a brief introduction to PLA synthesis mechanism, followed by a summary of the techniques of twin-screw reactive extrusion and tubular static mixing reaction, which are two new methods for rapid synthesis of PLA with large-scale production potential. The structures, advantages and disadvantages of each technique are then reviewed in the paper. Finally, the rapid synthetic methods are prospected.