Synthesis and Characterization of Crosslinked Polymers from Cottonseed Oil

Traditional plastics are usually obtained from petroleum feedstocks. The petroleum-based plastics are not readily degradable and can stay in landfills for long time without any significant deterioration. In this study, a crosslinked polymer was synthesized from cottonseed oil. Unsaturated fatty acids, the major components of cottonseed oils, were initially epoxidized. Average epoxides content was estimated to be about 5.5% with yield of 87%, as determined by ¹H-NMR technique. A network polymer was then formed by crosslinking the epoxidized oil with maleic anhydrate. Mechanical properties of these polymers were altered by varying the amount of maleic anhydrate and the modulus increased with increasing maleic anhydride content. Polymerization method exhibited yield in the range of 68-80%. Our results provide a new synthetic strategy to obtain polymers from cottonseed oil.