Green biocomposites of chitosan dispersed in natural rubber matrices, and their urea controlled-release application

A green biocomposite comprising chitosan dispersed in partially cross-linked natural rubber matricesd was prepared. The starting materials and biocomposites were characterized by means of Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. Chitosan was found well dispersed in partially cross-linked natural rubber matrices indicating that natural rubber latex is successfully stabilized by sodium dodecyl sulfate. The swelling study of the biocomposites was carried out in several solvents. The biocomposites were used for the controlled release of urea. The release behavior was found consistent, controlled, and prolonged over a period of 72 h. The Korsmeyer-Peppas model was applied to the experimental data and the possible release mechanism was found Fickian diffusion, which indicates that the polymer relaxation time is much greater than the characteristic solvent diffusion time. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.