In this study, a temperature sensitive shape memory polymer (SMP) system based on polylactic acid (PLA) has
been developed and the effect of graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) on the shape memory properties was evaluated. Dispersion
of GNPs in PLA was improved with the aid of a zwitterionic surfactant. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron
microscopy (TEM) showed that the surface modified graphene nanoplatelets (SMGNPs) were exfoliated and homogenously
dispersed in the PLA matrix due to enhancement of the polymer-graphene interaction. Mechanical properties of the samples
namely stiffness and elasticity were increased upon incorporation of graphene nanoplatelets accompanied by their good
dispersion in the PLA matrix. Furthermore, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed that the nucleation effect of
graphene promote the crystallization and noticeably enhanced the degree of crystallinity. Finally, prominent mechanical
properties along with high degree of crystallization due to fine dispersion of surface modified graphenes, resulted in drastic
improvement in shape memory performance.