Table 5.

The first stage of biodegradation of PLA and PBS, adapted from [64]. Reprinted from Polymers for Advanced Technologies, Volume 8, Mochizuki, M.; Hirami, M., Structural Effects on the Biodegradation of Aliphatic Polyesters, 203-209, Copyright © 1997, with permission from John Wiley and Sons.

Polymer	PLA	PBS
Type	Chemical hydrolysis	Enzymatic hydrolysis
Access point	Outer to inner	Outer only
Surface appearance	Smooth (not eroded)	Rough (eroded)
Weight loss	Negligible	Detectable
Molecular weight reduction	Detectable	Negligible