Morphology and mechanical properties of thermo-molded bioplastics based on glycerol-plasticized wheat gliadins

Glycerol-plasticized wheat gliadin bioplastics were prepared through thermo-molding method. The effect of glycerol content on the morphology and the mechanical properties of wheat gliadin bioplastics was studied. Morphology, tensile properties (tensile strength and elongation at break), dynamic mechanical properties and rheological properties were evaluated in relation to glycerol content. Experimental results reveal that the morphology, the glass transition temperatures (T_g) of both the gliadin-rich and the glycerol-rich domains and the tensile properties are closely linked to the glycerol content. The time–temperature superposition (TTS) fails to be applied to the dynamic loss modulus G″ (all temperatures) and the dynamic storage modulus G′ (above 80 °C) of wheat gliadin bioplastics.