In this work we investigated the reduction in molecular weight of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBHV) with two methods: by acid hydrolysis and transesterification with ethylene and hexyleneglycol. The processing parameters studied were time, temperature and concentration of catalysts. Both methodologies resulted in functionalized biopolymers with hydroxyl and carboxyl end-groups and reduced molecular weight. A comparison of the methodologies allowed us to determine which one was more efficient for the functionalization of PHBHV. The reduction in molecular weight associated with functionalization strategies is extremely useful to induce changes in the degradation rate of materials, thus broadening their applications as biomaterials.
PHBHV; molecular weight reduction; functionalization; acid hydrolysis; transesterification
