Synthetic polymers exhibit interesting properties, such as mechanical strength and high wear resistance, made them good candidates to replace other materials like glass and wood. However, they generate large volume of waste and huge amount of CO2 during their production and dumping. Substitution of petroleum-based plastics with bio-based plastics is a promising alternative to reduce CO2 footprint and the pressure on landfills from the synthetic non-degradable plastic waste, both are crucial for sustainable environments. This work presents our efforts to develop and characterize various types of biodegradable materials for packaging, drug delivery, and wastewater treatment applications. The materials include copolymers of poly(ε-caprolactone) with poly[oligo(ethylene glycol)methyl ether methacrylate] and with Guar Gum, and its thermoplastic polyurethane based on L-lysine diisocyanate and 1,4-butanediol. Synthesis of the biopolymers and their morphology, thermal, mechanical, dynamic mechanical, and dielectric characteristics will be presented. In addition, measurements of the low critical solution temperature of the poly(ε-caprolactone)-b-poly[oligo (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate] amphiphilic copolymers in aqueous medium using UV-visible spectroscopy will be discussed. Behavior of the copolymers studied by transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and adsorption experiments indicate their potential to remove colloidal organic impurities from wastewater, without changing the pH of the water.

Biodegradable compolymers based on poly(ε-caprolactone): From packaging to wastewater treatment applications

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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