Table 3.
Mechanical properties of PLA nanocomposites and their counter-part materials without chitin nanocrystals.
| Materials | Young’s Modulus (GPa) | Tensile Strength (MPa) | Ultimate Strength (MPa) | Elongation at Break (%) | Work of Fracture (MJ/m3) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLA 1 | 1.86 ± 0.10 | 60.6 ± 0.6 | 52.0 ± 4.8 | 7.9 ± 0.4 | 3.5 ± 0.3 |
| PLA 2 | 1.87 a ± 0.05 | 59.2 a ± 2.1 | 55.2 a ± 3.3 | 5.8 a ± 0.4 | 2.3 a ± 0.2 |
| PLA-ChNC | 1.91 a ± 0.08 | 52.7 b ± 0.7 | 50.2 a ± 1.7 | 4.5 b ± 0.3 | 1.6 b ± 0.2 |
| PLA-TEC2.5 | 2.04 α ± 0.13 | 54.7 α ± 3.9 | 51.6 α ± 3.9 | 5.6 α ± 0.6 | 2.2 α ± 0.3 |
| PLA-TEC2.5-ChNC | 1.90 α ± 0.03 | 56.6 α ± 0.9 | 55.3 α ± 1.3 | 4.2 β ± 0.3 | 1.4 β ± 0.2 |
| PLA-TEC5.0 | 1.80 δ ± 0.04 | 49.4 δ ± 2.5 | 44.7 δ ± 2.0 | 6.5 δ ± 0.8 | 2.4 δ ± 0.3 |
| PLA-TEC5.0-ChNC | 1.94 γ ± 0.02 | 54.4 γ ± 1.7 | 52.3 γ ± 1.8 | 4.6 γ ± 0.1 | 1.6 γ ± 0.1 |
| PLA-TEC7.5 | 1.83 A ± 0.00 | 43.7 A ± 0.6 | 39.8 A ± 3.5 | 5.6 A ± 0.9 | 1.8 A ± 0.4 |
| PLA-TEC7.5-ChNC | 1.92 B ± 0.02 | 47.5 B ± 0.2 | 45.8 B ± 0.1 | 5.3 A ± 0.5 | 1.9 A ± 0.3 |
1 Extruded PLA; 2 Extruded PLA with water and ethanol. Same superscript letters (a, b, α, β, δ, γ, A and B) within the same column are not significantly different at 5% significance level based on ANOVA and the Tukey-HSD multiple comparison test.