The oil-absorbing property of polyhydroxyalkanoate films and its practical application: a refreshing new outlook for an old degrading material.
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) have attracted the attention of academia and industry because of their plastic-like properties and biodegradability. However, practical applications as a commodity material have not materialized because of their high production cost and unsatisfactory mechanical properties. PHAs are also believed to have high-value applications as an absorbable biomaterial for tissue engineering and drug-delivery devices because of their biocompatibility. However, research in these areas is still in its very early stages. The main problem faced by proponents of PHAs is the lack of a niche area where PHAs will be the most desired material in terms of its function during use rather than because of its eco-friendly virtues after use. Here, we report on the oil-absorbing property of PHA films and its potential applications. By comparing with some of the existing commercial products, the potential application of PHAs as cosmetic oil-blotting films is revealed for the first time. Besides having the ability to rapidly absorb and retain oil, PHA films also have a natural oil-indicator property, showing obvious changes in opacity following oil absorption. Surface analysis revealed that the surface structures such as porosity and smoothness exert great influence on the rapid oil-absorption properties of the PHA films. These newly discovered properties could be exploited to create a niche area for the practical applications of PHAs.
Sudesh
Kumar
K
School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang 11800, Malaysia. ksudesh@usm.my
Loo
Ching-Yee
CY
Goh
Lay-Koon
LK
Iwata
Tadahisa
T
Maeda
Mizuo
M
D000042:Absorption; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D003358:Cosmetics / Q000737:chemistry*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D009821:Oils / Q000737:chemistry*; D054813:Polyhydroxyalkanoates / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D016062:Porosity; D013499:Surface Properties; D023822:Tissue Engineering
D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D003358:Cosmetics; D009821:Oils; D054813:Polyhydroxyalkanoates