Abstract
The composites of polylactic acid (PLA) exhibit improved mechanical strength, biocompatibility, antimicrobial properties, and degradation, making these suitable for biomedical applications. This investigation compares the effect of various reinforcements such as tricalcium phosphate (TCP), magnesium oxide (MgO), zinc oxide (ZnO), and zirconium oxide (ZrO2) on PLA. Various weight fractions of TCP, MgO, ZnO, and ZrO2 were used to fabricate the PLA/TCP, PLA/MgO, PLA/ZnO, and PLA/ZrO2 composites and compared with pure PLA. PLA/TCP, PLA/MgO, PLA/ZnO, and PLA/ZrO2 nanocomposites exhibit enhanced tensile strength with a significant change in ductility. Further, all the composites exhibit enhanced degradation in terms of weight loss in the phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution. The failure analysis of deformed specimens under tensile load confirmed the improved load-carrying capabilities of PLA/ZnO as compared to other composites.
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