357279

Biodegradability of Biobased Polyurethane Films under the Action of Different Fungal Strains

Article

Last updated: 09 Mar 2025

Subjects

-

Tags

Polymer chemistry

Abstract

Polyurethanes (PUs) are characterized by different physicochemical and mechanical properties that enable their utilization in a wide range of applications. Recently, biobased polyurethanes have attracted great interest as an ecofriendly alternative to traditional polyurethanes. These biobased macromolecules display unique properties, such as renewability, low toxicity and abiotic or biotic degradability. This research investigated the biodegradation of biobased polyurethane films by different fungi, namely, Aspergillus niger (An), Penicillium sp. (Pen) and Trichoderma hazardium (Th). The biodegradation tests were performed under static conditions and in liquid media. The biodegraded polyurethane films were characterized using ATR-FTIR, thermal analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The chemical structure of the biodegraded samples demonstrated obvious evidence for degradation through the disappearance or shifting of absorption bands according to the fungal strain used. Thermal degradation investigations confirmed the effect of fungi on the hard segment of the urethane bonds in the polyurethans films, leading to their decomposition at lower temperatures than in the case of the untreated films. Additionally, surface imaging of the treated films revealed significant changes after exposure to metabolic reactions of the fungi used. The results confirmed that the presence of amino groups in the PU structure enhances polymer disintegration. Moreover, the effect of Trichoderma hazardium was more pronounced than that of the other strains.

DOI

10.21608/ejchem.2024.276325.9455

Keywords

Bio-based polyurethane, biodegradation, fungi

Authors

First Name

Mona

Last Name

H. Abdel Rehim

MiddleName

-

Affiliation

Packing dept., NRC

Email

monaabdelrehim23@gmail.com

City

-

Orcid

-

First Name

Nora

Last Name

Elgamal

MiddleName

N. A.

Affiliation

Microbial Chemistry Department, Biotechnology Research Institue

Email

nora.elgamal888@gmail.com

City

-

Orcid

-

First Name

Maysa

Last Name

Moharam

MiddleName

E.

Affiliation

Microbial Chemistry Department, National Research Centre,

Email

maysa_nrc@live.com

City

-

Orcid

-

Volume

68

Article Issue

1

Related Issue

53249

Issue Date

2025-01-01

Receive Date

2024-03-14

Publish Date

2025-01-01

Page Start

227

Page End

233

Print ISSN

0449-2285

Online ISSN

2357-0245

Link

https://ejchem.journals.ekb.eg/article_357279.html

Detail API

http://journals.ekb.eg?_action=service&article_code=357279

Order

357,279

Type

Original Article

Type Code

297

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Egyptian Journal of Chemistry

Publication Link

https://ejchem.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Biodegradability of Biobased Polyurethane Films under the Action of Different Fungal Strains

Details

Type

Article

Created At

01 Feb 2025