Table 2.
Some characteristics of commonly used aliphatic polyesters.
| Characteristics | PLLA | PDLA | PDLLA | PGA | PHB | PCL | PBS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crystallinity, (%) | Up to 40 (50, thermal treatment) [3,11,84,85] | Amorphous [11,84] |
45–77 [86] |
50–80 [79,87,88] |
Up to 69 (up to 80 during degradation) [89,90] |
35–45 [80,91] |
|
| Density, (g/cm3) | 1.29 [84] |
1.25 [84] |
1.25 [84] |
1.50–1.71 [86,92] |
1.26 [88] |
1.07–1.20 [89] |
1.23–1.26 [80,91] |
| Tg, (oC) | 55–80 [84] |
40–50 [84] |
43–60 [11,84] |
35–40 [86,93] |
4–9 [79,87] |
(−65)–(−54) [89,93] |
(−45)–(−10) [91] |
| Tm, (oC) | 170–200 [11,79,84] |
120–150 [84] |
120–170 [84] |
220–230 [86,93] |
165–185 [79,87] |
55–70 [90,93,94] |
90–120 [91] |
| E, (GPa) | 2–4 [93] |
1–3.5 [93] |
6–7 [86,93] |
2.5–3.5 [79,87,88] |
0.21–0.44 [89,90] |
0.03–0.71 [80] |
|
| Tensile strength, (MPa) | 60–70 [93] |
40 [93] |
60–110 [86] |
20–43 [79,87,88] |
4–785 [89,90] |
20–35 [80,91] |
|
| Elongation at break, (%) | 2–6 [93] |
1–2 [93] |
1–20 [86,93] |
5–10 [79,88] |
20–4000 [89,93] |
560 [91] |
|
| Solubility | CHCl3, 1,4-dioxan, furan [84] |
Ethyl lactate, ethyl acetate, THF, DMF, DMSO, xylene [84] | Aceton, CDCl3, 1,4-dioxan, furan [84] |
Hexafluoro-isopropanol (only for polymers with M ˂ 45,000) [86,93] |
Hot CHCl3 and CH2Cl2 [87] | 1,4-dioxane, 2-nitropropane,cyclohexanone, THF, toluene, benzene, CHCl3, CCl4, CH2Cl2 [90] | CHCl3 [95] |
| Degradation | More than 2 years [93] | 3–6 months [93] | From 6 weeks to 6 months [86,93,96] | 4–12 weeks [97] |
From several months to several years [89,98] |
1–30% for 6 months [99,100] |
|
Abbreviations: THF: tetrahydrofuran; DMF: dimethylformamide; DMSO: dimethyl sulfoxide. Physical quantities: Tg—glass-transition temperature; Tm—melting temperature; E—elastic modulus.