Zenasni, M. A.Meroufel, B.Georgeb, B.2023-09-042023-09-0420222170-16X2588-2082http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/14901Biodegradable polymer nanocomposites of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and several organically modified kaolin, namely, Kaolin raw (K08), kaolin APTES (KS) and kaolin CTAB (KC) were prepared by melt compounding using a Brabender mono-screw extruder. An exfoliated morphology was observed using both X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for the combination of PLA with kaolin raw, with kaolin CTAB (the kaolin modified with a quaternary ammonium salt) and with kaolin APTES (the kaolin modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane). Further studies were carried out to compare the properties of the nanocomposites with those of the neat PLA. Thermal stability of the nanocomposites was studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).enBiodegradablePolylactic acidKaolinNanocompositeMelt mixtureArticle