With petroleum reserves becoming limited, vegetable oils have been reported as a sustainable alternative in the synthesis of polymers. In this study, polyols were synthesized through the epoxidation and hydroxylation of sunflower seed oil and linseed oil. The epoxidation intermediate was confirmed by analyzing the respective spectra and detecting a new resonance at 822.2 cm-1 (FT-IR) and a multiplet at d = 2.9-3.1ppm (1H NMR). Once hydroxylated, the polyols can be utilized to produce a variety of materials of interest in our lab that include a nano-particle drug delivery system and an eco-friendly surfboard. These synthetic advances will lead to the inclusion of seed oils in consumer products and biomedical medical research.

Synthesis of polyols from seed oils with various applications from surfboards to drug delivery systems

245th National Meeting (2013)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.