Fabrication of castor-oil/polycaprolactone based bio-polyurethane foam reinforced with nanocellulose

Abstract

Polyurethane (PU) foam retains many of the merits of PU such as low density, outstanding energy absorption, and high dimensional stability, which can satisfy various applications. PU foam based on biomaterials was investigated to replace traditional petroleum-based polyol. Polyols were synthesized from castor oil (CO) and polycaprolactone (PCL). In addition, the effects of the nanocellulose on the thermal and mechanical properties of CO-based PU foam were investigated. Nanocellulose at the content of 0.2 wt% was used as reinforcement for CO-based PU foam in this research. Investigation of thermal and mechanical properties found that the CO-based PU foam with the addition of the nanocellulose allowed the best properties. This result indicates that addition of the nanocellulose could be an effective way to improve the mechanical and thermal properties of PU foams. The foamed structure was examined using scanning electron microscopy to determine cell morphology.