[EN] Thiswork reports the effect of acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (AESO) addition on the mechanical, thermal, and thermomechanical properties of polylactide (PLA) parts obtained by injection molding. To this end, AESO, a chemically multi-functionalized vegetable oil, was incorporated into PLA during melt processing. The PLA parts with AESO contents in the 2.5¿7.5 wt% range showed a remarkable enhancement in both elongation at break and impact-absorbed energy while their tensile and flexural strength as well as thermomechanical properties were maintained or slightly improved. Additionally, the AESO-containing PLA parts presented higher thermal stability and lower crystallinity. The improvement achievedwas ascribed to a dual effect of plasticization in combination with a chain-extension and/or cross-linking process of the PLA chains by the highly reactive acrylate and epoxy groups present in AESO. The use of AESO thus represents an environmentally friendly solution to obtain toughened PLA materials of high interest in, for instance, rigid packaging, automotive or building and construction applications.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) [grant numbers MAT2014-59242-C2-1-R & AGL2015-63855-C2-1-R]. L. Quiles-Carrillo thanks the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sports (MECD) for financial support through the FPU program [grant number FPU15/03812].Quiles-Carrillo, L.; Duart, S.; Montanes, N.; Torres-Giner, S.; Balart, R. (2018). Enhancement of the mechanical and thermal properties of injection-molded polylactide parts by the addition of acrylated epoxidized soybean oil. Materials & Design. 140:54-63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2017.11.031S546314
