Strategy for the Preparation of PBAT/Starch Blended Foam with High Resilience and Shrinkage Resistance

Poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT), a biodegradable polyester, has gained increasing research interest. Foam polymers based on PBAT have demonstrated high potential for various applications. Here, we propose a novel method for blending foam made of starch and PBAT. Melt blending was used to create PBAT/starch blends, and batch supercritical CO₂ autoclave foaming was used to create polymer foams. We looked into the mechanical characteristics, crystallization, and dispersion morphology of PBAT/starch mixes. The structure, together with the anti-shrinkage and compressive strengths of PBAT/starch foams were investigated. The findings demonstrate that starch can be more effectively incorporated into the PBAT matrix with the aid of polyol (glycerol) and that the addition of starch with specific quantities can create a clear bimodal-like cell structure, thus increasing the matrix's rigidity and lessen the shrinkage issue with PBAT foam, resulting in foam with good compression resilience. The largest expansion ratio, 19, the least shrinking, and outstanding compression resilience were found in the 70/30 mixture of PBAT and starch. It provides a broadly applicable method for possible large-scale manufacture of biodegradable polyester foams with anti-shrinkage and high compression resilience.