Synthesis, Characterization and Biodegradable Studies of Oil Based Polymers from Triethyleneglycoldimethacrylate and Vinylacetate

An attempt to find alternative ways of producing polymers from non-petroleum oil specifically, soybean oil, was carried out. The idea originated because of the need to produce polymers from renewable oil sources as well as with cost effective materials. The acrylated epoxy resin was obtained by insitu epoxidation of soybean oil under controlled reaction conditions. Two new polymeric materials were prepared by varying the concentration of the comonomers triethyleneglycoldimethacrylate (TEGMA), and Vinylacetate (VA). The new polymeric materials exhibited tensile stress-strain behaviour ranging from soft rubbers to relatively brittle plastics. They were characterized with respect to their resistance to chemical reagents and mechanical properties such as tensile strength, percentage elongation and hardness. Thermal characterization such as differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) were carried out. Biodegradability test was carried out using hydrolytic test, chemical resistance test and soil burial test. In soil burial degradation, the polymer sample showed severe surface degradation by the attack of microorganism. These soybean oil based polymers possessed mechanical properties comparable to those of commercially available rubbery materials and conventional plastics and this may serve as replacements in many applications.