Biodegradable composite material based on the starch-g-vinyl acetate copolymer

A native potato starch was modififi ed with vinyl acetate by graft polymerization in alkaline medium with pH 10 in the mode of temperature change from 70 to 80°C for 4 hours. The initiator of the process was ammonium persulfate (NH4)2S2O8. The conversion of vinyl acetate was 91,5%. The chemical structure of graft copolymer (Starch:Vinyl acetate) was confifi rmed by IR-spectroscopy. Composite materials of modififi ed starch and triethyl citrate with tensile strength of 24 MPa were obtained. Under natural environmental conditions, materials undergo biodegradation of 96% in 28 days.