Currently, there is great interest in biodegradable
polymers obtained from renewable resources, such as
starch, to replace conventional polymers of petrochemical
origin in several applications, for instance, the production
of flexible and semi-rigid materials.
Thermoplastic starch materials (TPS), due to their
hydrophilic character, have high water vapor permeability
and their mechanical properties are dependent on the
relative humidity, thus limiting their use on an industrial
scale
Blends of TPS with other biodegradable poly-
mers represent an alternative to improve the properties of
thermoplastic starch materials
Avérous and Fringant
tested starch blends with
different polyesters. In the presence of polyesters the
mechanical properties and dimensional stability increased,
while the hydrophilic character of the starch decreased.