CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
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2025
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IF 13.2
Weiqi Chen,Han Hu,Li Cai,Hanxu Zhu,Qingyang Luan,Qi Jiang,Peng Liang,Jie Feng,Jinggang Wang,Jin Zhu
Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) accounts for 8 % of global plastic production and 12 % of solid waste, driving extensive research into innovative recycling strategies. Nonetheless, performance degradation of mechanical recycling and high cost of chemical routes, highlighting the urgent need for cost-effective PET recycling solutions. This study presents a “one-pot” upcycling approach based on hydroxy transesterification, which directly converts PET waste into high-performance copolyesters. A key advantage of this method is the elimination of solvents and the avoidance of complete depolymerization using excess ethylene glycol or methanol. Thermal and mechanical analyses reveal that upcycled poly(ethylene- co -1,4 cyclohexanedimethanol terephthalate) (PETG) exhibits properties comparable to commercial PETG. Furthermore, we successfully synthesized a series of heat-resistance copolyesters using various PET waste sources, rigid diols with varying reactivity (2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanediol, spiroglycol, and isosorbide)—demonstrating the broad applicability of this strategy. Techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) demonstrate a 27.2 % reduction in production costs, along with 68 % and 84 % reductions in global warming potential and fossil fuel depletion, respectively. Overall, this platform provides a sustainable and cost-effective pathway for the upcycling of PET waste.
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AICHE JOURNAL
·
2026
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IF 4.4
Xuemei Han,Zhihong Ma,Wenjin Ma,Weizhong Zheng,Weizhen Sun,Ling Zhao
The catalytic dehydration of sorbitol to isosorbide is a key route for the sustainable production of bio-based platform chemicals, yet low product yield and severe side reactions remain critical challenges. In this work, how the hydrogen-bonding network of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) mediates the highly efficient and selective sorbitol dehydration was investigated. Among different DESs, betaine/methanesulfonic acid (Bet-MSA) with 1.0:1.1 molar ratio shows a maximum isosorbide yield of 85.03% under optimized conditions. The strong hydrogen-bonding network within DESs effectively activates sorbitol molecules, stabilizes reaction intermediates, and lowers the activation energy of the desired pathway, thereby enhancing catalytic selectivity. The non-steady state kinetic model can well predict the concentration changes of key components, in which Bet-MSA contributes to lower activation energy for the desired sorbitol formation pathway through the hydrogen-bonding interactions, thereby enhancing selectivity. This work provides mechanistic insights for the design and optimization of industrial sorbitol dehydration processes.
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ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering
·
2026
·Vol. 14
·期 30
·13766-13776
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IF 7.6
Weng Jiali,Liu Zheng,Wang Hongkun,Chu Dawang
Discarded PVC/cotton waterproof materials pose a significant challenge for sustainable recycling due to the release of corrosive HCl and the formation of sintered carbonaceous residues during conventional thermal processing. Here, we report a synergistic catalytic strategy for the co-conversion of PVC/cotton-based waste into value-added chemicals under mild hydrothermal conditions. Initially, Ru/TiO 2 catalyzes the dehydrochlorination of PVC at 190 ° C; the In Situ-generated HCl serves as a Brønsted acid catalyst to hydrolyze cellulose to glucose, followed by hydrogenation to sorbitol in 61.4% yield. The resulting dehydrochlorinated PVC residue undergoes oxidative aromatization to yield aromatic carboxylic acid, with a liquid product yield of 19.5% and a phthalic acid selectivity of 63.7%. Density functional theory calculations attribute the efficient dechlorination to Ru(1015) sites, which lower the activation energy for HCl elimination by 18.76 kJ mol −1 . This catalytic system demonstrates tolerance toward real-world waste composite materials and establishes a novel pathway for the integrated upcycling of halogenated plastics and lignocellulosic biomass. Life-cycle assessment shows 97% lower global warming potential than incineration, advancing resource circularity and sustainable waste management.
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MACROMOLECULES
·
2026
·
IF 5.7
Shijing Yan,Yingying Han,Meng Wu,Zhiwei Yang,Hui You,Weihua Xu,Jun Du,Cailiu Yin
The development of sustainable electronics demands materials that combine high performance with designed degradability, yet achieving this balance remains a challenge. Here, we demonstrate that systematically engineering the soft-segment molecular weight in fully degradable, biobased polyurethanes (PUs) unlocks a suite of tunable properties for high-performance pressure sensing. By varying poly(butylene adipate) (PBA) diol molecular weight in networks containing isosorbide and acid-cleavable hexahydrotriazine, we establish that longer PBA chains enhance soft-segment crystallinity and elongation (up to 978%), while an optimal intermediate molecular weight (2000 g/mol) yields the highest tensile strength (25.7 MPa) and excellent biocompatibility. This optimized PU exhibits robust shape-memory behavior (Rf > 98%) and undergoes controlled dual degradation: enzymatic (up to 50% mass loss in 6 weeks) and complete acid-triggered dissolution, enabling quantitative recovery of conductive carbon black filler. A microstructured composite sensor fabricated from this material achieves high sensitivity (15.32 kPa–1) with fast response/recovery and successfully monitors human motion. This work establishes molecular design rules for degradable PUs and provides a viable pathway toward sustainable, high-performance flexible electronics.
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MACROMOLECULES
·
2026
·
IF 5.7
Jianjun Li,Deyu Niu,Weijun Yang,Pengwu Xu,Piming Ma
Traditional bisphenol A-based polycarbonate (BPA-PC) has been restricted in food contact materials, particularly those for infants and babies, which has the potential chronic toxicity and estrogenic activity due to the presence of bisphenol A. In this study, a series of high-performance isosorbide (ISB)-based polyester-polycarbonates (PIs-PCLCs) were prepared using ISB, poly(caprolactone) diol, and diphenyl carbonate via melt transesterification polycondensation as a potential alternative to BPA-PC. The properties of the PIs-PCLC samples, such as strength, elongation, and glass transition temperature, gradually varied as increasing the polycaprolactone (PCL)-diol content from 0 to 10 mol %, and a good balance in performance was obtained at around 6.25% of the PCL-diol content. Notably, the PIs-PCLC-6.25 (6.25 represents the molar percentage of PCL diol) sample exhibited a tensile strength of 74.6 MPa, an elongation at break of 83%, a high glass transition temperature (Tg) of 122 °C, and an optical transmittance of 89.2% at 550 nm. This overall combination of properties was comparable to that of certain commercial engineering plastics. The small-angle X-ray scattering results obtained during tensile stretching reveal a transition in the deformation mechanism. While the poly(isosorbide carbonate) homopolymer exhibits craze-dominated fracture characteristics, the PIs-PCLC-6.25 sample demonstrates a shear band-mediated deformation process. This is attributed to the incorporation of flexible PCL diol chain segments, which leads to ductile fracture behavior. In summary, this study presents an efficient and viable strategy for fabricating high-performance PIs-PCLCs, thereby broadening the practical application prospects of high-performance biobased polymeric materials in areas such as food-contact packaging and medical devices.
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CHEMICAL ENGINEERING RESEARCH & DESIGN
·
2026
·
IF 4
Cong Liu,Xiaolong Miao,Dihang Zhou,Hongxing Wang
Isosorbide, a bio-based diol derived from sorbitol, is a promising alternative to bisphenol A (BPA) in polymer manufacturing, yet its large-scale production remains limited by diffusion constraints, secondary dehydration, and energy-intensive separation. In this work, we develop a continuous, high-selectivity process for isosorbide synthesis using a heterogeneous azeotropic catalytic distillation strategy. A direct-pump feeding system enables the continuous introduction of high-viscosity sorbitol without dilution, while an ion-exchange resin catalyst provides efficient dehydration under intensified reaction–separation conditions. Nearly complete sorbitol conversion (∼100 %) and 91.2 % isosorbide selectivity were achieved. Temperature-dependent LHHW kinetic modeling reveals that equilibrium shifting through continuous water removal, rather than mass-transfer limitations, governs selectivity enhancement. Process simulation further establishes a scalable three-column azeotropic catalytic distillation design capable of producing 10,000 tons per year, supported by favorable thermal and economic performance. This study demonstrates a practical and energy-efficient route for industrial isosorbide production and provides mechanistic and design guidance for future process scale-up.
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POLYMER
·
2022
·
IF 4.432
Yinglu Sun,Xinxin Tian,Haopu Xie,Biru Shi,Jiahui Zhong,Xiangdong Liu,Yuming Yang
In recent years, bio-based covalent adaptable networks (CANs) and vitrimers have developed rapidly in order to meet the renewable and sustainable requirements. It should be emphasized that the performance of the network need be upgraded and optimized to substitute petroleum-based polymers. Herein, a series of high-performance bio-based polyurethane were synthesized containing castor oil , isosorbide , vanillin derivative and 4,4′-Dicyclohexylmethane diisocyanate . By fine-tuning the bio-based diols , the hydrogen bond distribution and the crosslink density of the network were adjustable. The thermal mechanical properties and stress relaxation properties of the bio-based polyurethane were optimized. The bio-based polyurethane CANs shows tensile strength of 38.1 MPa, elongation at break of 243% and toughness of 55.7 MJ m −3 , which is outstanding among most reported bio-based CANs. In addition, the polymer has excellent water resistance, shape memory and re-deformability. Due to the dissociation of imine bonds under mild acid conditions, the carbon fiber composite can readily degrade in mixed solvent for 3 h at 60 °C and the properties of recycled carbon fibers are highly preserved.
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CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
·
2023
·
IF 15.1
Danping Yuan,Fukui Xiao,Ning Zhao,Cunbao Deng,Xin Huang,Hao Zhang,Qianmin Yang,Yonggang Qiao
The catalytic conversion of the biomass platform compound sorbitol to isosorbide is an important reaction for the production of relevant renewable chemicals. The development of highly efficient heterogeneous catalyst materials offers promising perspectives for the sorbitol dehydration reaction. The complex competitive reactions, such as degradation and polymerization, are still a major challenge to obtain isosorbide in high yield. In this work, a series of ionic liquid functionalized polymer catalysts, P-[C 3/4 R]-SF, were successfully prepared by hydrothermal synthesis, which has a high surface area and strong acidity. And the catalysts were fully characterized by the N 2 sorption–desorption isotherms, elemental analysis, water adsorption isotherms, FT-IR, TGA and 31 P NMR, etc. As a result, the as-prepared P-[C 3/4 R]-SF catalysts exhibited excellent catalytic activity and stability under mild reaction condition (140 °C, 6 h). The yield of isosorbide is up to 75 %, and it still has good catalytic activity after five cycles. This work provides a synthesis method of ionic liquid functionalized polymer catalyst and its application in sorbitol dehydration reaction.
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MACROMOLECULAR MATERIALS AND ENGINEERING
·
2022
·Vol. 307
·期 9
·2200203
·
IF 4.402
Yong Li,Jiehao Qu,Zenghui Dai,Junyi Jiang,Jiajia Fu,Feiya Fu,Xiangdong Liu
Herein, the successful design of a highly bio-based family of unsaturated polyester resins (UPRs) is presented, comprising of an isosorbide (ISO) incorporated unsaturated polyester prepolymer (UP) and a reactive diluent of 4-vinylguaiacol acetyl ester (ACVG). A series of UPs are prepared by copolymerizing ISO with other green monomers, i.e., itaconic acid, ethylene glycol and oxalic acid, in a variation of ISO fraction. The UP/ACVG mixtures exhibit very low viscosity ranging from 2.8 to 3.7 Pa s. After curing at 135 °C to form a network, the resulting thermosets exhibit remarkable improvements in terms of glass transition ( T g , about 131 °C), storage modulus (2564–3342 MPa), and tensile strength (around 76.6 MPa), which are significantly better than the UP thermosets reported in previous works, The incorporation of ISO units into the UPs reveals a favorable effect on thermal stability of the thermosets as well. The best Td5% is measured to be 320.4 °C, and the volatile molecular information collected using a TGA-GC/MS set suggests that the decomposition mechanism of the cross-linked resins becomes heat-resistant due to the ISO incorporation. Moreover, after being reinforced by cotton fabrics, an outstanding compatibility between the ISO containing UPRs and cotton fibers is found to be suitable for composite fabrication.
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INDUSTRIAL CROPS AND PRODUCTS
·
2021
·
IF 5.645
Yuchao Wu,Mingen Fei,Tingting Chen,Renhui Qiu,Wendi Liu
Inexpensive, abundant, and low iodine value palm oil (PO) from oil palm ( Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) was utilized to formulate biobased polymer matrices for fiber-reinforced composites. A reactive PO fatty acid-ethyl acrylamide (POFA-EA) was synthesized from PO and N -(2-hydroxyethyl)acrylamide (HEAA) via a benign transesterification. Another glucose-derived monomer, i.e., isosorbide was used to react with methacrylate anhydride to synthesize a comonomer, isosorbide-methacrylate (IM). Then, a new class of renewable, property-tunable, and degradable PO-based thermosets were prepared from flexible POFA-EA and rigid IM. The cross-linked POFA-EA/IM resins had suitable processability for composites, high glass transition temperatures ( T g s) (150−204 °C), and superior mechanical strengths and moduli, while maintaining high biobased contents (∼60 %). The PO-based thermoset composites reinforced by kenaf, bamboo, glass, and carbon fibers, respectively, exhibited higher T g s (136–193 °C) than their petroleum-based counterparts. Meanwhile, the PO-based matrices can be decomposed in a mild alkali solution, which provides a feasible way to recycle high performance reinforcements such as carbon fibers.
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GREEN CHEMISTRY
·
2021
·Vol. 23
·期 11
·4134-4143
·
IF 10.182
Weiwei Wang,Zifeng Yang,Yaqin Zhang,Hongyan He,Wenjuan Fang,Zhencai Zhang,Fei Xu
In this study, an efficient catalytic system composed of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) was developed by adjusting the basicity of hydrogen bond donors (HBDs) to synthesize poly(isosorbide) carbonate (PIC) with high weight average molecular weight (Mw). It was demonstrated that the Mw of PIC prepared by using nearly neutral [EminOH]Cl–2EG was the highest. The results of the transesterification kinetics with different catalysts supported that the transesterification rate was significantly promoted as the basicity of DESs increased but their strong alkalinity inhibited the Mw of PIC. Therefore, the degradation of PIC was investigated to reveal the mechanism of the influence of basicity on the molecular weight of PIC. The strong alkalinity of DESs would cause the depolymerization of the macromolecular chains and ultimately limit the molecular weight of the product, proving the experimental fact that a near-neutral catalyst was more conducive to the Mw of PIC. Finally, a reasonable mechanism of synergistic catalysis was proposed based on 1H NMR spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and experimental results. The metal-free, low-cost, high catalytic activity DES catalyst involved here is a practical candidate for advanced bio-based polycarbonate.
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Progress in Natural Science-Materials International
·
2021
·
IF 3.607
Xin Wang,Haoxin Niu,Wenwen Guo,Lei Song,Yuan Hu
Incorporating flame retardant fillers is the most efficient way to improve the fire resistance of polylactide (PLA). However, most flame retardant fillers result in deterioration of the mechanical property of PLA so far. Therefore, to create high-performance PLA materials combining excellent flame retardancy with superior mechanical properties remains highly attractive and challenging. In this study, a novel isosorbide-derived poly(phosphoester) (PIDI) was synthesized and used as a bio-based flame-retardant for PLA. The addition of PIDI showed a marginal effect on the change of the glass transition temperature of the PLA composites, but the crystallinity degree of the PLA composites was improved by the inclusion of PIDI. Benefitting from the improved crystallinity, the tensile strength, flexural strength, and impact strength of PLA composite containing 15 wt% PIDI was enhanced by 19.4%, 14.1%, and 36.9%, respectively, compared to the virgin PLA. With the addition of 20 wt% PIDI, the PLA composite showed an LOI value of 25.5% and a UL-94 V-0 rating in the vertical burning test. The flame retardant effect of PIDI was also demonstrated by a notable reduction (−46%) in the peak heat release rate (PHRR) of PLA composite containing 20 wt% PIDI. Such a renewable isosorbide-derived poly(phosphoester) is one of the promising candidates for PLA bio-composites with an outstanding balance between flame retardancy and intrinsic physical properties.
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