Ningbo, China – A group of scientists at Hunan Normal University and Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering have developed bio-based TPUs with high damping properties.
They made a series of TPUs based on polylactic acid glycol and polycaprolactone glycol along with IPDI and 1,4-butanediol, using a one-step polymerisation reaction. A comprehensive analysis of their properties was made.
They found that the damping performance could be controlled by adjusting the hard segments content, and the molecular weight of the PLA glycol. The TPUs had a tensile strength of almost 25 MPa, good thermal stability, and excellent damping performance. The fact that they have an effective damping temperature range of 50°C give the material great potential as a green damping material.
The work has been published in the Journal of Applied Polymer Science.
