PLA-Chitosan Composites as Sustainable Alternatives for Menstrual Pads
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/qpfb4t55Keywords:
Menstrual Pads, Polylactic Acid, Chitosan, Biodegradable, Biocompatible, Antimicrobial, Composite, Solvent Blending.Abstract
Polyethylene-based menstrual pads take centuries to biodegrade, contributing significant environmental waste while posing health risks for users. Fortunately, alternative polymers are available to replace polyethylene in menstrual pads. This research focuses on creating a composite of two promising polymers, Polylactic Acid (PLA) and Chitosan, as an alternative material to polyethylene-based menstrual pads. Both polymers are biodegradable and biocompatible, with chitosan being uniquely antimicrobial, presenting them as ideal materials for eco-friendly menstrual pads. The polymer blending technique, solvent blending, was utilized to mix PLA and Chitosan solutions in five different ratios. The solutions were placed into an air dryer for solvent evaporation, leaving behind thin film composites. A comprehensive analysis was conducted to assess the suitability of these materials through assessing its surface morphology, mechanical properties, water absorption, antimicrobial properties, and biodegradation. The findings demonstrated profound improvements in flexibility and tensile strength, water absorption, antimicrobial properties, and biodegradation. In comparison to polyethylene-based menstrual pads, this composite material can degrade in a few years, drastically improving the biodegradability period. These results offer valuable insights into the feasibility of PLA-chitosan composites for sustainable and health-conscious menstrual products. More importantly, a PLA-chitosan-based menstrual pad allows women to use a safer, eco-friendly product without concerns about health risks from synthetic materials.
Downloads
References
[1] Fourcassier, S., Mélanie Douziech, Pérez-López, P., & Schiebinger, L. (2022). Menstrual products: A comparable Life Cycle Assessment. Cleaner Environmental Systems, 7, 100096–100096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cesys.2022.100096.
[2] Woeller, Kara E., and Anne E. Hochwalt. “Safety Assessment of Sanitary Pads with a Polymeric Foam Absorbent Core.” Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, vol. 73, no. 1, Elsevier BV, Oct. 2015, pp. 419 – 24, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yrtph.2015.07.028.
[3] Dhaka, V., Singh, S., Anil, A. G., Sunil Kumar Naik, T. S., Garg, S., Samuel, J., Kumar, M., Ramamurthy, P. C., & Singh, J. (2022). Occurrence, toxicity and remediation of polyethylene terephthalate plastics. A review. Environmental chemistry letters, 20 (3), 1777 – 1800. https: //doi.org/10.1007/s10311 - 021 - 01384 - 8.
[4] Pontecorvi, P., Ceccarelli, S., Cece, F., Camero, S., Lotti, L. V., Niccolai, E., Nannini, G., Gerini, G., Anastasiadou, E., Scialis, E. S., Romano, E., Venneri, M. A., Amedei, A., Angeloni, A., Megiorni, F., & Marchese, C. (2023). Assessing the Impact of Polyethylene Nano/Microplastic Exposure on Human Vaginal Keratinocytes. International journal of molecular sciences, 24 (14), 11379. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411379.
[5] Upson, K., Shearston, J. A., & Kioumourtzoglou, M. A. (2022). Menstrual Products as a Source of Environmental Chemical Exposure: A Review from the Epidemiologic Perspective. Current environmental health reports, 9 (1), 38 – 52. https: //doi.org/10.1007/s40572 - 022 - 00331 - 1.
[6] Cunha, B. L. C., Bahú, J. O., Xavier, L. F., Crivellin, S., de Souza, S. D. A., Lodi, L., Jardini, A. L., Filho, R. M., Schiavon, M. I. R. B., Concha, V. O. C., Severino, P., & Souto, E. B. (2022). Lactide: Production Routes, Properties, and Applications. Bioengineering, 9 (4), 164. https://doi.org/10.3390/bioengineering9040164.
[7] Elieh-Ali-Komi, D., & Hamblin, M. R. (2016). Chitin and Chitosan: Production and Application of Versatile Biomedical Nanomaterials. International journal of advanced research, 4 (3), 411 – 427.
[8] Farah, S., Anderson, D. G., & Langer, R. (2016). Physical and mechanical properties of PLA, and their functions in widespread applications — A comprehensive review. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews, 107, 367 – 392. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addr.2016.06.012.
[9] Aranaz, I., Alcántara, A. R., Civera, M. C., Arias, C., Elorza, B., Heras Caballero, A., & Acosta, N. (2021). Chitosan: An Overview of Its Properties and Applications. Polymers, 13 (19), 3256. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13193256.
[10] Hoek, E., & Bieniawski, Z. T. (1984). Brittle fracture propagation in rock under compression. International Journal of Fracture, 26 (4), 276 – 294. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00962960.
[11] Sahariah, Priyanka, Mar, Masson. “Antimicrobial Chitosan and Chitosan Derivatives: A Review of the Structure-Activity Relationship.” Caltech Library, American Chemical Society, 21 Sept. 2017, DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.7b01058.
[12] Suryani, H. Agusnar, B. Wirjosentono, T. Rihayat, & Z. Salisah. (2018). Synthesis and characterization of poly (lactic acid)/chitosan nanocomposites based on renewable resources as biobased-material. Journal of Physics Conference Series, 953, 012015 – 012015. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742 - 6596/953/1/012015.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Highlights in Science, Engineering and Technology
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
