Starch-based plastic films were prepared by the electron beam irradiation of starch and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in a physical gel state at room temperature. The influence of starch/PVA composition, irradiation dose, and plasticizer (glycerol) on the properties of the plastic films was investigated. The gel fraction of the starch/PVA films increased with both the radiation dose and PVA content in the plastic film and decreased with increasing glycerol concentration. The starch/PVA compatibility was determined by measurement of the thermal properties of the starch/ PVA blends with various compositions with differential scanning calorimetry. The swelling of the starch/PVA films increased with increasing PVA content and decreasing irradiation dose. Mechanical studies were carried out, and the tensile strength of the films decreased at high starch ratios in the starch-based mixture. This was due to the decrease in the degree of crosslinking of starch. Furthermore, when PVA, a biodegradable and flexible-chain polymer, was incorporated into the starch-based films, the properties of the films, such as the flexibility (elongation at break), were obviously improved. The tensile strength of the films decreased with increasing glycerol concentration, but elongation at break increased up to a maximum value at a 20% glycerol concentration, and then, it leveled off and decreased slightly. Biodegradation of the starch/PVA plastic films was indicated by weight loss (%) after burial in soil and morphological shape, which was detected by scanning electron microscopy. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.