Development of biodegradable natural rubber latex composites by employing corn derivative bio‐fillers

Abstract This study aims to investigate the viability of employing corn‐based fillers (powdered corn grain [CG], corn flour [CF] and cornstarch [CS]) to improve the biodegradability of natural rubber latex (NRL) composites by varying filler loading from 0 to 50 phr. Notable variation in both physical and mechanical properties were observed for the different filler types, with CG‐filled NRL demonstrating the better adhesion with NRL. Thus, CG‐filled composites were selected for investigation of biodegradability. Increased CG loading in NRL compounds enhanced biodegradation; with over 70% degradation observed for 50 phr CG loading upon 15 weeks of soil burial. However, the trade‐off between mechanical properties and biodegradability limits the CG loading in the NRL matrix to 20 phr for manufacturing NRL‐based products. It was observed that NRL with CG filler loading of 20 phr conforms to the ASTM D3578 standard for manufacturing rubber gloves; with 50% biodegradation upon 15 weeks of soil burial.