The Effect of Solvent and Plasticizer on Mechanical Properties of Chitosan-Based Biocomposites

Nowadays, the use of non-oil materials with desirable properties, and at the same time reducing the adverse environmental impacts, has become one of the most important issues in industry. Chitosan, as one of the most abundant biopolymers in nature, has unique properties, including high biocompatibility, non-toxicity, acceptable antimicrobial properties, and excellent performance in terms of film formation. These properties have potentially made this biopolymer very useful in packaging industries, textile, pharmaceutical, and papermaking. In this regard, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effective parameters on the mechanical properties of chitosan biocomposites. The parameters such as type, concentration, pH, and functional groups of solvents are taken into consideration in making composites that are used as polymer phase fasteners. Also, the effect of plasticizers on weight percentages to reduce the fragility of chitosan films is discussed in this study. It was observed that the addition of each of these materials, due to their structure and molecular weight, weight percentage, distribution pattern at the matrix level, functional groups on their molecules affect the structure of chitosan polymeric chains and can change the mechanical properties of a biocomposite.