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Eco‐friendly Poly(butylene 1,4‐cyclohexanedicarboxylate): Relationships Between Stereochemistry and Crystallization Behavior
Author(s) -
Celli Annamaria,
Marchese Paola,
Sullalti Simone,
Berti Corrado,
Barbiroli Giancarlo
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
macromolecular chemistry and physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.57
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1521-3935
pISSN - 1022-1352
DOI - 10.1002/macp.201100052
Subject(s) - crystallization , crystallinity , environmentally friendly , biodegradation , materials science , phase (matter) , polymer chemistry , copolymer , polymer , chemical engineering , chemistry , organic chemistry , composite material , ecology , engineering , biology
Poly(butylene 1,4‐cyclohexanedicarboxylate) (PBCHD) is an environmentally friendly material, as it can be obtained from biomass (although nowadays it is prepared from petroleum resources) and is potentially biodegradable. Moreover, the aliphatic rings along the chains lend interesting characteristics, for example good mechanical properties and resistance to weather for outdoor applications. As many properties, such as biodegradability, strongly depend on crystallinity, a study of the crystallizability of PBCHDs is very meaningful. Equilibrium melting temperatures and crystallization rates are strongly affected by the cis/trans ratio of the 1,4‐cyclohexylene units. Indeed, only the trans isomer can form crystals, whereas the cis isomer is fully excluded from the crystalline phase. All thermal data can be well understood by considering PBCHD as a random copolymer with crystallizable (trans isomer) and noncrystallizable (cis isomer) components, which only differ for the stereochemistry of the aliphatic rings.