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A starch graft poly(methyl acrylate) copolymer was developed having grafted side chains with molecular weight of less than 500,000. This material can be easily extruded into a film which shows excellent initial tensile strength and elongation. Tensile strength, however, falls off rapidly after 70 hr of water immersion at 25°C. Starch graft poly(methyl acrylate) films show excellent susceptibility to fungal growth, some samples losing more than 40% of their weight after 22 days of incubation with Aspergillus niger . Tensile tests and scanning electron micrographs of the incubated samples, after being freed of mycelium, indicate substantial biodegradation of the starch portion of the copolymer. This material may have application as a biodegradable plastic mulch.
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Dennenberg et al. (1978) studied this question.
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