Supramolecular Polymer Nanocomposites Derived from Plant Oils and Cellulose Nanocrystals

Lingzhi Song, Zhongkai Wang, Meghan E. Lamm, Liang Yuan, Chuanbing Tang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

56 Scopus citations

Abstract

Sustainable functional materials derived from renewable biomass provide momentum for the communities of polymer science. We report a supramolecular approach to the preparation of strong biobased polymer nanocomposites with stimuli-responsive behaviors using soybean oil (SO) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). SO-derived polymers were modified with hydroxyl -OH and carboxyl -COOH groups via thiol-ene click chemistry, facilitating hydrogen-bonding interactions with CNCs to improve the overall compatibility in the nanocomposites. These nanocomposites exhibited high tensile strength and maintained high storage modulus up to 200 °C. Moreover, these nanocomposites showed a fast and reversible mechanical response to water, an external stimulus to tune intermolecular hydrogen bonding.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)7475-7483
Number of pages9
JournalMacromolecules
Volume50
Issue number19
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 10 2017
Externally publishedYes

Funding

Z. Wang thanks the National Science Foundation of China for financial support (Grants 51603002 and 51773001). Support from the National Science Foundation (DMR-1252611) is acknowledged.

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