Synthesis and innovation of PLA/clay nanocomposite characterization againts to mechanical and thermal properties

Plastic polymer is one of the most dominant materials of daily human activities because of its multifunctional nature, light and strong and anti-corrosion so it is easy to apply in various equipment. Plastic is generally derived from petroleum material so it is nonbiodegradable. Therefore, this study aims to create a breakthrough of natural and biodegradable biodegradable plastic materials from plant starch (pisok kepok starch) with the help of 3 types of acid (HNO₃, HCl and H₂SO₄) called Poly Lactid Acid (PLA). PLA is enhanced by mixing with a clay material with a variation of 1, 3 and 5% composition to form a PLA / Clay Nanocomposite material which is expected to have superior properties and resemble conventional plastics in general. Several types of characterization were performed to see the quality of the resulting material including tensile strength test with UTM tool, thermal endurance test with TGA tool, morphological structure test using SEM tool and additional test to see filler clay quality through X-RD tool. Based on the characterization of tensile and thermal test, 5B nanocomposite with addition of 5% clay and HCl acid aid showed the best tensile strength of 36 Mpa and the highest stability was 446,63 oC. Based on the results of morphological analysis of the best samples (5B) showed good interface ties. Meanwhile, based on the results of filler analysis, the opening of clay layer d-spacing occurred at 0.355 nm. (paper)