Open Access

REVIEW

Thermoplastic Starch: Current Development and Future Trends

Fengwei Xie^1,*, Paul Luckman¹, John Milne¹, Lachlan McDonald¹, Conor Young¹, Chen Yang Tu¹, Teo Di Pasquale¹, Reinhard Faveere¹, Peter J. Halley^1,2

1 Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Qld 4072, Australia
2 School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, Qld 4072, Australia

* Corresponding Authors: ;

Journal of Renewable Materials 2014, 2(2), 95-106. https://doi.org/10.7569/JRM.2014.634104

Received 19 March 2014; Accepted 02 April 2014;

Abstract

Starch is a biopolymer that is widely available from agriculture/nature and thus is renewable and cheap. In addition, starch-based materials are biodegradable, offering a great advantage over traditional nonbiodegradable synthetic polymers. However, the poor processibility and product performance of starch have greatly impeded the wide application of starch in real applications. This paper reviews the current developments of the production of thermoplastic starch as a commodity renewable material. The biological origins of the feedstock, formulation development, processing requirements, as well as the important aspects that need to be addressed when designing a product from starch are discussed. It is hoped that this paper will provide insights into thermoplastic starch-based materials trends and and inspiration for future research.

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Keywords

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