Polylactic acid is one of most important and promising biodegradable and bioabsorbable materials. It has been widely applied as biodegradable plastics and fibers as well as biomaterials

and therefore

is of tremendous market value. Polylactic acid has polyolefins-comparative mechanical and processing properties but unsatisfactory heat and impact resistance. Its thermal

mechanical and gas barrier properties need to be enhanced to satisfy various applications. Preparation of nanocomposites of polylactic acid with inorganic nanoparticles is an effective approach to remarkably improve the properties. The progress in the preparation

structure and properties of polylactic acid-based nanocomposites as well as the relationships among them are reviewed

and the prospect of this field is discussed.