Nanocomposite Materials Based on TMDCs WS₂ Modified Poly(l-Lactic Acid)/Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride) Polymer Blends

Novel multifunctional biopolymer blend nanocomposites composed of poly(vinylidene fluoride)(PVDF) and tungsten disulfide nanotubes (INT-WS₂) that are layered transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) were easily prepared by applying an economical, scalable, and versatile melt processing route. Furthermore, their synergistic effect to enhance the properties of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) matrix was investigated. From morphological analysis, it was shown that the incorporation of 1D (INT)-WS₂ into the immiscible PLLA/PVDF mixtures (weight ratios: 80/20, 60/40, 40/60, and 20/80) led to an improvement in the dispersibility of the PVDF phase, a reduction in its average domain size, and consequently a larger interfacial area. In addition, the nanoparticles INT-WS₂ can act as effective nucleating agents and reinforcing fillers in PLLA/PVDF blends, and as such, greatly improve their thermal and dynamic-mechanical properties. The improvements are more pronounced in the ternary blend nanocomposites with the lowest PVDF content, likely due to a synergistic effect of both highly crystalline PVDF and 1D-TMDCs nano-additives on the matrix performance. Considering the promising properties of the developed materials, the inexpensive synthetic process, and the extraordinary properties of environmentally friendly and biocompatibe 1D-TMDCs WS₂, this work may open up opportunities to produce new PLLA/PVDF hybrid nanocomposites that show great potential for biomedical applications.