Abstract
Boron trifluoride diethyl etherate (BF3·OEt2) catalyzed ring-opening polymerization of euphorbia oil (EuO), natural epoxy oil, in liquid carbon dioxide was conducted in an effort to develop useful vegetable oil based polymers. The resulting polymers (RPEuO) were characterized by FTIR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, solid state 13C NMR spectroscopies, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The results indicated that the ring-opening polymerization of EuO occurred at mild conditions, such as at room temperature, and a subcritical carbon dioxide (CO2) pressure of 65.5bar. The formed RPEuO materials were cross-linked polymers. The glass transition temperatures of these polymers ranged from −15.0 to −22.7°C. TGA results showed that the RPEuO polymers were thermally stable at temperatures lower than 220°C and significant decomposition mainly occurred above 340°C.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
