NOVEL BIODEGRADABLE COPOLYAMIDES BASED ON ADIPIC ACID, BIS (P-AMINOCYCLOHEXYL) METHANE AND SEVERAL ALPHA-AMINO-ACIDS - SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION AND STUDY OF THEIR DEGRADABILITY FOR FOOD-PACKAGING APPLICATIONS .4.
I. Arvanitoyannis et al., NOVEL BIODEGRADABLE COPOLYAMIDES BASED ON ADIPIC ACID, BIS (P-AMINOCYCLOHEXYL) METHANE AND SEVERAL ALPHA-AMINO-ACIDS - SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION AND STUDY OF THEIR DEGRADABILITY FOR FOOD-PACKAGING APPLICATIONS .4., Polymer, 35(21), 1994, pp. 4678-4689
Novel biodegradable copolyamides were synthesized using the bulk polyc
ondensation method. The statistical copolyamides produced by the simul
taneous reaction of the salt of adipic acid and bis(p-aminocyclohexyl)
methane and several alpha-amino acids were characterized by elemental
analyses, density and viscosity measurements and Fourier transform inf
ra-red spectroscopy. The semicrystalline or amorphous nature of these
novel copolyamides was confirmed both by differential thermal analysis
measurements and wide-angle X-ray diffraction patterns. Their biodegr
adability was investigated by testing their resistance to alkali hydro
lysis (10% w/v NaOH), to microbial/bacterial attack when buried in soi
l and to enzymatic hydrolysis. The biodegradation of copolyamides was
followed using gel permeation chromatography and differential thermal
analysis. Possible applications of these polymers could be envisaged i
n the fields of agriculture, packaging and medicine.