Controlling the thermomechanical properties of biobased ABA triblock copolymers comprising polylactide (A) and poly(1,2-propylene succinate) (B) with high molecular weight

Bis-hydroxyl-terminated poly(1,2-propylene succinate) (PPS-diols) with high molecular weight (10–40 kDa) are prepared by two-step melt polycondensation of succinic acid and 1,2-propanediol with Ti(BuO)₄ as the catalyst. By using these PPS-diols as macroinitiators, the ring-opening polymerization of d - and l -lactides is readily conducted to obtain enantiomeric ABA triblock copolymers consisting of poly(l -lactide) and PPS (B) (t-l -PPS) as well as those of poly(d -lactide) and PPS (B) (t-d -PPS) which have higher PPS compositions (20–70 wt%) in addition to high molecular weight (20–80 kD). The T_g, T_m, and ΔH_m values of the t-l -PPS copolymers as well as the stereo mixtures of t-l -PPS/t-d -PPS are controlled to linearly decrease with increasing the PPS content. The copolymers also exhibit higher elastomeric properties with increasing the PPS content. The tensile properties of the copolymer films having higher PPS contents (both the single block copolymers and stereo mixtures) are comparable to those of the oil-based thermoplastic elastomers. It is therefore concluded that these block copolymers can afford thermoplastic elastomers or flexible plastic materials having a 100% biobased content.     

Synthesis of high‐impact biodegradable multiblock copolymers comprising of poly(butylene succinate) and poly(1,2‐propylene succinate) with hexamethylene diisocyanate as chain extender

Block copolymers demonstrate excellent thermal and mechanical properties superior to their corresponding random copolymers and homopolymers. However, it is difficult to synthesize block copolymers comprising of different polyester segments by copolycondensation due to the serious transesterification reaction. In this study, multiblock copolymers comprising of two different polyester segments, i.e. crystallizable poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and amorphous poly(1,2‐propylene succinate) (PPSu), were synthesized by chain‐extension with hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI). Amorphous PPSu segment was incorporated to improve the impact strength of PBS. The copolymers were characterized by GPC, laser light scattering (LLS), NMR, DSC, and mechanical testing. The results of ¹³C NMR spectra suggest that multiblock copolymers with regular sequential structure have been successfully synthesized. The data of DSC and mechanical testing indicate that block copolymers possess excellent thermal and mechanical properties with satisfactory tensile strength and extraordinary impact strength achieving upto 1900% of pure PBS. The influence of PPSu ratio and chain length of both the segments on the thermal and mechanical properties was investigated. The incorporation of an amorphous soft segment PPSu imparts high‐impact resistance to the copolymers without obviously decreasing the melting point (T_m). The favorable mechanical and thermal properties of the copolymers also depend on their regular sequential structure. At the same time, the introduction of amorphous PPSu segment enhances the enzymatic degradation rate of the multiblock copolymers. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thermal,Mechanical and Rheological Properties of Eco-friendly Poly（propylene carbonate）/Poly（1,2-propylene succinate） Blends

In order to improve the flexibility of poly（propylene carbonate） （PPC）, poly（1,2-propylene succinate） （PPSu） was used to plasticize PPC in a batch mixer. The effects of PPSu on the miscibility, thermal stability, mechanical and theological properties of the blends were investigated. PPC was partially miscible with PPSu. It was demonstrated that PPSu decreased the glass transition temperature and melt viscosity of PPC, as shown in the DSC and rheological curves. With the increase in PPSu content, the PPC/PPSu blends showed decreased tensile strength, however, the elongation at break was increased to 1100% for the 70/30 PPC/PPSu blend. The introduction of PPSu provided an efficient and novel plasticization method to extend the application area of PPC.     

High‐molecular‐weight poly(1,2‐propylene succinate): A soft biobased polyester applicable as an effective modifier of poly(l‐Lactide)

Poly(1,2‐propylene succinate) (PPS) having high molecular weight can be synthesized by multi‐step melt‐polycondensation of succinic acid (SA) and 1,2‐propylene glycol (PG) with various catalysts. The first step is noncatalytic esterification/oligomerization of the two monomers, followed by the second step of catalytic melt‐polycondensation. In this step, co‐catalyst systems of Zn(AcO)₂/Ge(OBu)₄ and Zn(AcO)₂/Ti(BuO)₄ are effective for obtaining PPS having middle molecular weights (>10.0 kDa). This middle‐molecular‐weight PPS is chain‐elongated in the third‐step polycondensation with Zn(AcO)₂ as the catalyst to obtain a molecular weight reaching 120 kDa. As verified by ¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR spectra combined with two‐dimensional experiments, PPS has a ω‐bis‐hydroxy structure where the PG units leave the secondary hydroxyl terminals in larger ratio than the primary hydroxyl terminals. The PPS polymers are amorphous in nature, showing T_g around −4 °C. PPS can be solution‐ and melt‐blended with poly(l ‐lactide) (PLLA). By melt‐blending a high‐molecular‐weight PPS in an amount of 7.5–15 wt %, the modulus of the PLLA films decreases below 2000 MPa and the tear strength increases twice, supporting the effectiveness of PPS polymer in imparting flexible nature to PLLA. PPS polymers can therefore be applicable as elastomeric or flexible plastic modifiers having a 100 % biobased content. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 1795–1805     

Synthesis and rheological properties of polylactide/poly(ethylene glycol) multiblock copolymers

Ring-opening polymerization of D,L-lactide was carried out in the presence of poly(ethylene glycol), using Zn powder as catalyst. The hydroxyl-capped PLA-PEG-PLA triblock copolymers were coupled with adipoyl chloride at different molar ratios under mild conditions. N-Dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) was used as catalyst of the coupling reaction. The resulting PLA/PEG multiblock copolymers were characterized by various analytical techniques such as IR, 1H NMR, SEC, and DSC. Sol-gel transition properties of the multiblock copolymers were investigated by mechanical rheology. The data showed that the sol-gel transition temperature and the transition modulus increased with increasing molecular weight and the solution concentration of the multiblock copolymers. [Graph: see text] Variation of storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G') as a function of temperature for a 20% sample of MB3.     

Synthesis,characterization and isothermal crystallization behavior of poly(butylene succinate)‐b‐poly(diethylene glycol succinate) multiblock copolymers

In order to modify the properties of poly(butylene succinate), poly(diethylene glycol succinate) (PDGS) segment was incorporated by chain‐extension reaction of dihydroxyl‐terminated PBS and PDGS precursors using hexamethylene diisocyanate as a chain extender to form PBS‐b‐PDGS multiblock copolymers. The chemical structure and basic physical properties of the multiblock copolyesters were characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), wide angle X‐ray diffraction, and tensile testing. The results suggested that the incorporation of PDGS segments would increase the elongation at break of PBS significantly while decrease its melting temperature and crystallization temperature slightly. The isothermal crystallization kinetics studied by DSC and polarized optical microscopy indicated that the crystallization rate of the multiblock polymers decreased gradually with increasing PDGS segment content while the crystallization mechanism kept unchanged and the spherulitic growth rate of the multiblock copolymers decreased gradually with increase in PDGS content due to its diluent effect to the crystallization of PBS segments. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Multiblock copolymers composed of poly(butylene succinate) and poly(1,2-propylene succinate): Effect of molar ratio of diisocyanate to polyester-diols on crosslink densities, thermal properties, mechanical properties and biodegradability

In order to study the relationship between structure and properties, multiblock copolymers composed of poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly (1,2-propylene succinate) (PPSu) have been synthesized by chain-extension at various molar ratios of hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI) to polyester-diols, which have been abbreviated as R-values in this paper. Molecular weights of soluble fractions, gel fractions and crosslink densities have been determined. Thermal properties, mechanical properties and biodegradability have been studied and correlated with R-values. Crystallization of copolymers becomes difficult with increasing R-value. Tensile strength, flexural strength and flexural modulus tend to increase with increasing R-value up to 1.2, and vary little when R-value increases from 1.2 to 1.3, then decrease with further increase in R-value. Impact strength achieves a maximum value at R-value of 1.3. Biodegradation rate reaches a minimum value when R-value is 1.1. Biodegradation has been studied systematically by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), ¹H NMR and SEM.     

Transesterification and crystallization behavior of poly(butylene succinate)/poly(butylene terephthalate) block copolymers

The block copolymers of poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT) were synthesized by melt processing for different times. The sequence distribution, thermal properties, and crystallization behavior were investigated over a wide range of compositions. For PBS/PBT block copolymers it was confirmed by statistical analysis from ¹H-NMR data that the degree of randomness (B) was below 1. The melting peak (T_m) gradually moved to lower temperature with increasing melt processing time. It can be seen that the transesterification between PBS and PBT leads to a random copolymer. From the X-ray diffraction diagrams, only the crystal structure of PBS appeared in the M1 copolymer (PBS 80 wt %) and that of PBT appeared in the M3 (PBS 50 wt %) to M5 (PBS 20 wt %) copolymers. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 36: 147–156, 1998     

Thermal behaviors and characteristics of polylactide/poly(butylene succinate) blend films via reactive compatibilization and plasticization

Polylactide (PLA)/poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) blend films modified with a compatibilizer and a plasticizer were hot‐melted through a twin screw extruder and prepared by hydraulic press. Toluene diisocyanate (TDI) and polylactide‐grafted‐maleic anhydride (PLA‐g‐MA) were used as compatibilizers, while triethyl citrate and tricresyl phosphate acted as plasticizers. The effects of the type and content of compatibilizer and plasticizer on the mechanical characteristics, thermal properties, crystallization behavior, and phase morphology of the PLA/PBS blend films were investigated. Reactive compatibilization at increasing levels of TDI improved the compatibility of the PLA and PBS, affecting the toughness of the films. As evidenced by scanning electron microscope, the addition of TDI enhanced the interfacial adhesion of the blends, leading to the appearance of many elongated fibrils at the fracture surface. Furthermore, PLA/PBS blending with both TDI and PLA‐g‐MA led to an acceleration of the cold crystallization rate and an increment of the degree of crystallinity ( ). Toluene diisocyanate could be a more effective compatibilizer than PLA‐g‐MA for PLA/PBS blend films. The synergistic combination of compatibilizer and plasticizer brought a significant improvement in elongation at break and tensile‐impact toughness of the PLA/PBS blends, compared with neat PLA. Their failure mode changed from brittle to ductile due to the improved compatibility and molecular segment mobility of the PLA and PBS phases. Differential scanning calorimeter results revealed that the plasticizers triethyl citrate and tricresyl phosphate changed the thermal behavior of T_cc and T_m, affecting α′ and α crystal formations. However, these plasticizers only slightly improved the thermal stability of the films.     

Properties and characteristics of polylactide blends: Synergistic combination of poly(butylene succinate) and flame retardant

A study on the influence of flame‐retardant types, poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) contents, and combination of flame retardant and PBS on the mechanical, thermal, morphological, and flame retardancy properties of polylactide (PLA) and PLA/PBS blends was investigated. Blending of PLA, PBS, and flame retardant was prepared by a twin screw extruder. Tricresyl phosphate (TCP) and montmorillonite (MMT) were used as a flame retardant, whereas PBS acted as a flexible material for enhancing the fire resistance and toughness of PLA, respectively. The results revealed that the introducing of TCP and MMT greatly improved the impact strength of the PLA. The impact toughness of PLA blends with 20 wt% of PBS increased to about 244% that of neat PLA. The addition of flame retardants markedly improved the limiting oxygen index of PLA from 18.0% to 30.1% and 24.3% for the blends containing TCP and MMT. The V‐0 rating in UL‐94 testing was achieved with PLA/TCP blend. Elongation at break, impact toughness, and thermal stability of PLA significantly increased with the increment of PBS concentration. The synergistic effect of flame retardant and PBS afforded the PLA blends with outstanding increase of impact resistance. Furthermore, the flame retardant of TCP in the system not only affected dripping behavior and total flame time of PLA/PBS blends but also improved limiting oxygen index values due to the forming of char layer and inhibiting of burning mechanism.     

Polyethylene‐poly(L‐lactide) diblock copolymers: Synthesis and compatibilization of poly(L‐lactide)/polyethylene blends

A model polyethylene‐poly(L ‐lactide) diblock copolymer (PE‐b‐PLLA) was synthesized using hydroxyl‐terminated PE (PE‐OH) as a macroinitiator for the ring‐opening polymerization of L ‐lactide. Binary blends, which contained poly(L ‐lactide) (PLLA) and very low‐density polyethylene (LDPE), and ternary blends, which contained PLLA, LDPE, and PE‐b‐PLLA, were prepared by solution blending followed by precipitation and compression molding. Particle size analysis and scanning electron microscopy results showed that the particle size and distribution of the LDPE dispersed in the PLLA matrix was sharply decreased upon the addition of PE‐b‐PLLA. The tensile and Izod impact testing results on the ternary blends showed significantly improved toughness as compared to the PLLA homopolymer or the corresponding PLLA/LDPE binary blends. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 2755–2766, 2001     

Thermal and mechanical properties of mandelic acid‐copolymerized poly(butylene succinate) and poly(ethylene adipate)

Phenyl side chains were introduced to poly(butylene succinate) and poly(ethylene adipate) by the polymerization of the respective monomers in the presence of mandelic acid. The increasing content of the phenyl side chains decreased the melting temperature and the crystallinity but increased the glass‐transition temperature of the aliphatic polyesters. The phenyl side branches reduced the crystallinity of poly(butylene succinate) more significantly than the ethyl or n‐octyl side branches did. The tensile strength, elongation, and tear strength of poly(ethylene adipate) decreased with an increase in the content of mandelic acid units. However, the increasing content of mandelic acid units enhanced the elongation and tear strength of poly(butylene succinate) considerably without a notable deterioration of tensile strength. The biodegradability of the copolyesters was increased as a result of the introduction of more mandelic acid units due to the decrease in the crystallinity. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 38: 1504–1511, 2000     

Synthesis and hydrolytic degradation of poly(ethylene succinate) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) copolymers

The conditions of synthesis of statistical poly(ethylene succinate-co-terephthalate) copolymers (2GTS) and high molecular weight poly(ethylene succinate) (PES) with good hydrolytic and optical parameters, designed for the production of biodegradable products and resins, are presented in this article. Copolymers were prepared by melt polycondensation of bis-(β-hydroxyethylene terephthalate) (BHET) and succinic acid (SA) with excess of ethylene glycol (2G) in the presence of a novel titanium/silicate catalyst (C-94) and catalytic grade of germanium dioxide (GeO₂) as cocatalyst. The chemical structure and physical properties of those materials were characterized by ¹H NMR, FT-IR, dynamical-mechanical thermal analyses (DMTA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), solution viscosity and spectroscopic methods. The hydrolytic degradation was performed in a water solution with variable pH, also in garden soil and in compost. The highest hydrolytic degradation rate was observed for pH 4 and for compost. Better hydrolytic degradation values in compost medium were observed for copolyester prepared in the presence of GeO₂ as polycondensation cocatalyst. The copolyester with 40 mol% of aliphatic units was chosen for industrial syntheses which were performed in ELANA and subsequently the processing parameters and compatibility with potato starch of this polyester were checked by BIOP Biopolymer Technologies AG.     

Thermal degradation mechanism of poly(ethylene succinate) and poly(butylene succinate): Comparative study

Two aliphatic polyesters that consisted from succinic acid, ethylene glycol and butylene glycol, —poly(ethylene succinate) (PESu) and poly(butylene succinate) (PBSu)—, were prepared by melt polycondensation process in a glass batch reactor. These polyesters were characterized by DSC, ¹H NMR and molecular weight distribution. Their number average molecular weight is almost identical in both polyesters, close to 7000 g/mol, as well as their carboxyl end groups (80 eq/10⁶ g). From TG and Differential TG (DTG) thermograms it was found that the decomposition step appears at a temperature 399 °C for PBSu and 413 °C for PESu. This is an indication that PESu is more stable than PBSu and that chemical structure plays an important role in the thermal decomposition process. In both polyesters degradation takes place in two stages, the first that corresponds to a very small mass loss, and the second at elevated temperatures being the main degradation stage. The two stages are attributed to different decomposition mechanisms as is verified from the values of activation energy determined with iso-conversional methods of Ozawa, Flyn, Wall and Friedman. The first mechanism that takes place at low temperatures, is auto-catalysis with activation energy E = 128 and E = 182 kJ/mol and reaction order n = 0.75 and 1.84 for PBSu and PESu, respectively. The second mechanism is nth-order reaction with E = 189 and 256 kJ/mol and reaction order n = 0.68 and 0.96 for PBSu and PESu, respectively, as they were calculated from the fitting of experimental results.     

Influence of transesterification reactions on the miscibility and thermal properties of poly(butylene/diethylene succinate) copolymers

Poly(butylene/diethylene succinate) block copolymers (PBSPDGS), prepared by reactive blending of the parent homopolymers (PBS and PDGS) in the presence of Ti(OBu)₄, were analyzed by ¹H-NMR, TGA and DSC, in order to investigate the effects of the transesterification reactions on the molecular structure and thermal properties. ¹H-NMR analysis evidenced the formation of copolymers whose degree of randomness increases with the mixing time. The thermal analysis of the melt-quenched samples showed that the melting peak, due to the crystalline phase of PBS, tends to disappear with increasing mixing time and therefore with decreasing the block length in the copolymers. As concern miscibility, a single homogeneous amorphous phase always occurred, independently on block length. Nevertheless, a phase separation, due to the tendency of the PBS blocks to crystallize, was evidenced in the copolymers with long butylene succinate sequences. The results obtained indicated that the block size had a fundamental role in determining the crystallizability and, therefore, phase behavior of the block copolymers.     

聚丁二酸丁二酯的无卤阻燃性能的研究

本文研究了聚苯基膦酸二苯砜酯(PSPPP)对聚丁二酸丁二酯(PBS)的阻燃作用。研究发现,在PBS中仅添加4wt%的PSPPP,其垂直燃烧就可以达到UL-94 V-0级,极限氧指数达到34,PSPPP对PBS表现出高效阻燃作用。然而,PSPPP对PBS有促进降解的作用,破坏了PBS的力学性能。通过在PBS/PSPPP体系中添加0.5wt%氧化锌后,有效抑制了PBS的降解,力学性能得到改善。     

Superior heat-resistant polylactide/poly(butylene succinate) blend fibers via in-situ reactive compatibilization

Blending poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) with polylactide (PLLA) has proven effective in improving heat resistance of PLLA fibers. Unfortunately, it remains challenging to maintain good spinnability for PLLA/PBS blends with high content of PBS with which further improved heat resistance could be anticipated. In this study, reactive melt-extrusion was devised to in-situ generate PLLA-PBS copolymers by introducing zinc acetate as a transesterification catalyst into PLLA/PBS blends. The compatibility between the PLLA and PBS phases was greatly improved by the formation of PLLA-PBS copolymers, resulting in excellent melt-spinnability even for the PLLA/PBS blends with high PBS content up to 20 wt%. In addition, an increase in crystallinity of PLLA was achieved in PLLA/PBS blend fibers, thanks to the enhanced compatibility. More importantly, the presence of PBS nuclei retarded the molecular orientation of the amorphous PLLA phase, consistent with the effective results from the relaxation heat-setting treatment. These led to an exceptionally improved heat resistance of the PLLA/PBS blend fibers. As an encouraging result, the boiling water shrinkage was significantly reduced from ca. 20% for neat PLLA fibers to 3.7% for the PLLA/PBS blend fibers with 20 wt% PBS content. These findings may open up a facile and effective route to develop PLLA/PBS blend fibers showing sound spinnability, greatly improved heat resistance and softness.     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(ethylene oxide)/polylactide/poly(ethylene oxide) triblock copolymer

Poly(ethylene oxide/polylactide/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO/PL/PEO) triblock copolymers, in which each block is connected by an ester bond, were synthesized by a coupling reaction between PL and PEO. Hydroxyl‐terminated PLs with various molecular weights were synthesized and used as hard segments. Hydroxyl‐terminated PEOs were converted to the corresponding acid halides via their acid group and used as a soft segment. Triblock copolymers were identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ¹H NMR, and gel permeation chromatography. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X‐ray diffractometry of PEO/PL/PEO triblock copolymers suggested that PL and PEO blocks were phase‐separated and that the crystallization behavior of the PL block was markedly affected by the presence of the PEO block. PEO/PL/PEO triblock copolymers with PEO 0.75k had two exothermic peaks (by DSC), and both peaks were related to the crystallization of PL. According to thermogravimetric analysis, PEO/PL/PEO triblock copolymer showed a higher thermal stability than PL or PEO. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 2545–2555, 2002     

Synthesis and endosomolytic properties of poly(amidoamine) block copolymers

The poly(amidoamine)s (PAAs) ISA 1 and ISA 23 display pH-dependent conformational change and pH-dependent membrane perturbation. These properties confer potential for use as endosomolytic polymers for intracytoplasmic delivery of toxins and genes. Both polymers are relatively non-toxic, and moreover ISA 23 has the beneficial property in vivo, of being non hepatotropic when administered intravenously. Although ISA 23 and ISA 1 demonstrate ability to transfect cells, ISA 1 is also able to promote intracellular delivery of non-permeant toxins. The aim of this study was to synthesise random and block copolymers of ISA 1 and ISA 23 and investigate whether these second generation hybrids would allow optimisation of PAA biological characteristics. Random and block copolymers of ISA 1 and ISA 23 were synthesised by hydrogen transfer polyaddition to generate a library of PAAs with an ISA 23:ISA 1 molar ratios of 2:1 to 4:1. The resultant polymers have a pI slightly below 7.4 and a M(w) of 19,900-49,000 g/mol and a M(n) of 13,100-24,100 g/mol. Whereas none of the random or block copolymers were haemolytic at pH 7.4 all demonstrated pH-dependent membrane activity. At pH 5.5 they caused 50-60% haemoglobin (Hb) release over 1 h. This was slightly less than that seen for ISA 23 (80% Hb release). None of the copolymers were cytotoxic against B16F10 cells during a 72 h incubation (IC(50) > 2 mg/ml; MTT assay). The ability of the random and block copolymer PAAs to deliver the toxin gelonin was also examined, but only ISA 1 and the block copolymer B2 (ISA 23:ISA 1 at a 2:1 molar ratio) were able to promote intracellular delivery, as measured by cytotoxic activity. It would be interesting to study the body distribution of B2 and determine whether this toxin-delivering PAA is able to escape liver capture.     

Star-graft copolymers. Synthesis of amphiphilic graft copolymers with star-branched poly(oxyethylene) side chains

The synthesis of novel amphiphilic star-graft (SG) copolymers containing hydrophilic poly(oxyethylene) (PEO) side chains attached to a hydrophobic backbone by multifunctional entity is reported. In a first step poly(phthalimidoacrylate-co-styrene) was converted into polymers containing different number of multifunctional branching cites distributed along the main chain by partial aminolysis of the phthalimidoacrylate units with tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane. In the second step, these reactive copolymers yielded SG copolymers with different number of star-shaped PEO side groups by reaction with isocyanato terminated methoxy–PEO. The copolymers were characterized by size-exclusion chromatography, IR-, and NMR-spectroscopy. Their thermal properties were examined by thermal gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. The studies indicate that the grafting degree and hydrogen bonding determine to a great extent the behavior of the SG copolymers in solid state and in solution. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 35: 673–679, 1997