Synthesis, Thermal Behavior and Mechanical Property of Fully Biobased Poly(hexamethylene Furandicarboxylate-co-hexamethylene Thiophenedicarboxylate) Copolyesters

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new type of biobased polyester that balances strength and toughness by adjusting its chemical composition.

Contribution

The study introduces a novel biobased copolyester with tunable thermal and mechanical properties through the incorporation of thiophenedicarboxylate units.

Findings

PHFTh copolyesters showed excellent thermal stability across varying compositions.

The addition of HTh units increased elongation at break while maintaining strength.

PHFTh copolyesters displayed semicrystalline behavior and isodimorphism over the composition range.

Abstract

In order to increase the toughness of poly(hexamethylene furandicarboxylate) (PHF) without severely compromising its strength at break, novel biobased poly(hexamethylene furandicarboxylate-co-hexamethylene thiophenedicarboxylate) (PHFTh) copolyesters and their parent homopolyesters, PHF and poly(hexamethylene thiophenedicarboxylate), were successfully synthesized through melt polycondensation in this research. Despite the variation in their compositions, all the PHFTh copolyesters exhibited excellent thermal stability. The PHFTh copolyesters were semicrystalline in nature, showing the lowest eutectic melting points and isodimorphism behaviors over the whole composition range. As the hexamethylene thiophenedicarboxylate (HTh) unit content increased, the glass transition temperature of the copolyesters gradually decreased, while the chain mobility was accordingly enhanced. Therefore, the introduction of the HTh unit significantly increased the elongation at break of the PHFTh, achieving a balance between strength and toughness. The biobased PHFTh copolyesters showed tunable thermal behaviors and excellent mechanical properties and may find potential end uses from a practical application viewpoint.

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