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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Plant Polymer Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #320261
Research Project: Renewable Biobased Particles

Location: Plant Polymer Research

Title: Biobased composites from cross-linked soybean oil and thermoplastic polyurethane

Author
item Jong, Lei
item Liu, Zengshe - Kevin

Submitted to: Polymer Engineering & Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/24/2016
Publication Date: 3/1/2017
Citation: Jong, L., Liu, Z. 2017. Biobased composites from cross-linked soybean oil and thermoplastic polyurethane. Polymer Engineering & Science. 57(3):275-282.

Interpretive Summary: Polymer blends are useful for a variety of applications such as molded objects for industrial, office and kitchen products. In this development, molded polymer blends were developed from thermoplastic polyurethane and acrylated-epoxidized soybean oil. The crosslinked acrylated epoxidized soybean oil alone is brittle and not useful for molded objects. We found that the flexibility and toughness of acrylated-epoxidized soybean oil were improved by incorporating different amount of theromalplastic polyurethane. This development will create new markets for soybean products, and will be beneficial to soybean grower and processing industries.

Technical Abstract: Soybean oil is an important sustainable material. Crosslinked acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (AESO) is brittle and the incorporation of thermoplastic polyurethane improves its toughness. The hydrophilic functional groups from both oil and polyurethane contribute to the adhesion of the blend components through the formation of hydrogen bonds. The incorporation of polyurethane into the blend increases the elongation of the blends. The best tensile strength of 20 MPa with an elongation of 120% was obtained from the hydrogen bonded composites for molded plastic objects in potential damping and surface applications. The temperature dependent storage moduli in the elevated temperature region showed a transition from thermoplastic to thermoset as the amount of AESO increased in the blends. The dynamic shear modulus increased substantially as the AESO content in the blend increased. The temperature dependent loss tangent reflects the variation of the blend components in the glass transition region. AESO has higher activation energy for thermal degradation than polyurethane. Thermal stability of the blends was improved with the incorporation of AESO.