Abstract

Objective: The present work shows the effect of Bentonite Clay (BC) on the biodegradation behavior of Poly Vinyl Alcohol (PVA)/Banana Peel Nano Crystals (BPNC) composite films.

Method: Biodegradation studies were conducted using soil burial and bacterial degradation method. The prepared composite films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy.

Results: Biodegradation studies reported that the composite films were more degradable in bacterial environment as compared to natural soil burial. The addition of Bentonite Clay (BC) had negative effect on degradation rate of composite films.

Conclusion: PVA/BPNC/BC composite film showed less weight loss (%) as compared to PVA/BPNC composite films because BC had stabilizing effect against the microbial attack which prevents biodegradation.

Keywords: Bentonite clay, banana peel nanocrystals, bacterial degradation, soil burial study, microbial attack, PVA/BPNC composite films.