Polyurethanes from soybean oil, aromatic, and cycloaliphatic diamines by nonisocyanate route

Polyurethanes were prepared via a nonisocyanate route, by reacting carbonated soybean oil (CSBO) with aromatic and cycloaliphatic diamines. Nonisocyanate polyurethanes prepared form CSBO and aliphatic diamines have relatively low tensile strength and one of the possible ways to increase strength and rigidity is to use diamines with rigid aromatic or cyclic structure. The effect of amine structure and amine to carbonate ratio on polyurethane structure and mechanical, physical, and swelling properties was studied. m‐xylylene diamine (m‐XDA), p‐xylylene diamine (p‐XDA), and isophorone diamine were used as the reactants, with amine to carbonate ratios of 0.5 : 1, 1 : 1, and 1 : 2. All amines produced elastomeric polyurethanes with glass transitions between −6° C and 26°C, as measured by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). T g was primarily controlled by the amine‐to‐cyclic carbonate ratio, and to a lesser extent by the amine structure. The highest tensile strength was obtained for p‐XDA and the lowest for m‐XDA as a result of differences in hydrogen bonding. Tensile strength and hardness were higher than in aliphatic diamine‐based polyurethanes. Swelling in toluene and water depended on the polarity of polyurethane networks that was dominantly controlled by the amine‐to‐cyclic carbonate ratio. Swelling in toluene was higher at the lower amine to carbonate ratio due to lower polarity of the polyurethane matrix. Swelling in water behaved quite the opposite, the degree of swelling for the more polar polyurethane matrix was higher. Reaction temperatures of 70–100°C were high enough to promote ester group cleavage and along with urethanes, amide formation was always present. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013