Adhesives from renewable feedstocks
AssigneePurdue Research Foundation
InventorsJonathan James Wilker, Courtney Lynn Jenkins
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Poly[(3,4-dihydroxymandelic acid)-co-(lactic acid)] can be produced from renewable feedstocks, possesses tunable degradation, and can achieve adhesion strengths rivaling the performance of existing glues and adhesives. In one aspect, a polymer is presented. The polymer includes poly[(3,4-dihydroxymandelic acid)-co-(lactic acid)]. The polymer can be an adhesive. The adhesive is configured to have tunable degradation. The polymer is derived from renewable resources. The renewable resources can include any one of or a combination of starch, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, chitin, polyphenols, poly (isoprene), suberin, polyterpenes, polyterpenoids, polyhydroxyalkanoates, rosin-based polymers, triglyceride-based polymers, alginates, and/or proteins.
Claims6
A process for preparing a biomimetic polymer comprising the steps of
- a. heating 3,4-(methylenedioxy)mandelic acid to afford an oligomer thereof;
- b. preparing polylactic acid (PLA) from a renewable resource;
- c. melting PLA and oligomer of 3,4-(methylenedioxy)mandelic acid at an elevated temperature in the presence of tin(II) 2-ethylhexanoate and a strong acid at a molar ratio of about 1:1 under reduced pressure;
- and
- d. removing methylene moiety of phenolic hydroxyl protection using a strong acid to afford said biomimetic polymer, wherein said strong acid used to remove methylene protection is p-toluenesulfonic acid in an amount of about 10% weight of reaction mixture.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.