The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is attractive feedstock for polymer synthesis because it is inexpensive, non-flammable and non-toxic gas. CO₂ can be copolymerized with various epoxides to produce polyols using a double metal cyanide (DMC) catalyst. In this study, CO₂-based polyols with varying carbonate contents (0–50 wt%) were synthesized and employed as precursors for the preparation of thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs). The mechanical, thermal, and water absorption properties of the resulting TPUs were systematically investigated. As the carbonate content in the polyols increased, both viscosity and glass transition temperature (Tg) also increased. Notably, the TPU derived from the polyol with 50 wt% carbonate content exhibited the highest tensile strength (9.6 MPa) and superior water resistance. These results demonstrate that tuning the carbonate content in CO₂-based polyols offers an effective strategy for tailoring the thermal, mechanical, and water-resistance properties of TPUs