Preparation and characterization of castor oil-based waterborne polyurethane crosslinked with 2-amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)-1,3-propanediol

Crosslinked castor oil (CO)-based waterborne polyurethane was synthesized from CO, polycarbonate diol, isophorone diisocyanate, 2,2-dimethylol propionic acid, and 2-amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)-1,3-propanediol (THAM) using pre-polymer process. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy were utilized to characterize the above-synthesized polyurethane. The effect of THAM content was studied on particle size, zeta potential, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, tensile tests, and contact angle measurement. Results showed that, with the increase of THAM content, the particle size increases and the thermal stability increases. Furthermore, as the THAM content increased from 0% to 1.5%, tensile strength increased from 9.5 to 16.3 MPa, contact angle increased from 67.8° to 87.4°, and bibulous rate decreased from 13.4% to 6.1%, the elongation at break dropped from 154.8% to 37.9%, respectively. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134 , 45532.