Full Biobased Polymeric Material from Plant Oil and Poly(lactic acid) with a Shape Memory Property

This article deals with the synthesis of biobased polymeric material with a shape memory property from epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) and poly( l- lactic acid) (PLLA). PolyESO/PLLAs were synthesized by an acid-catalyzed curing of ESO in the presence of PLLA. PLLA was scarcely reacted with ESO during the reaction and was dispersed in the ESO-based polymer network. The Young’s modulus and maximum tensile stress of the polyESO/PLLA increased as the PLLA content increased. On the other hand, the strain at break of the polyESO/PLLA was larger than that of the ESO homopolymer and neat PLLA. The polyESO/PLLA exhibited excellent shape memory-recovery behaviors, and the ability depended on the feed ratio of ESO and PLLA. Because the present materials are prepared from renewable resources by a simple preparation method, this study is highly significant to provide biobased intelligent materials.