Miscibility, properties, and biodegradability of microbial polyester containing blends

The blending of poly [(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate] [P(3HB)] or poly((R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) [P(3HB-co-3HV)] with other synthetic polymers has attracted much interest as one approach to improve the inherent brittleness as well as to reduce high production cost of the microbial polyesters. Crystallization behavior, physical properties, and biodegradation behaviors of the microbial polyester containing blends are significantly affected by the nature of the blend partner component depending on whether it is biodegradable or not and/or whether it is miscible with the microbial polyesters or not. In this article, we have a critic review on the recent progress of the polymer blends based on the microbial polyesters. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.