• polymer
• mechanical properties
• bio-plastics
• renewable source

1-Focus on the study and optimization of composites based on PHA with fibres, specially Posidonia Oceanica, to assess the feasibility of producing materials biodegradable and to improve the mechanical properties, varying the fibers type and their percentage. Standard samples were obtained by extrusion in micromixer “Thermo Scientific HAAKE Minilab II”. They were tested with tensile and Charpy impact strength test. Were used different type of plasticizer: ATBC, OLA8, OLA2, PEG400. Biodegradation test in marine environment were carried out. The amount of CO2 developed is calculated from the consumption of KOH in the flask and determined by titration with HCl 0.1 M using phenolphthalein as indicator. From this calculation were estimated the index of biodegradability for PHA, PHA + Posidonia Oceanica.
2-Focus on the optimation of bioreacting formulations, the application of biocoatings on materials, the functionality test of the coating prototype, the characterization of the coated packaging materials from the material point of view (thickness) and the evaluation of the functionality of the materials on the food (food half-life testing)