Replacement of styrene with acrylated epoxidized soybean oil in an unsaturated polyester resin from propylene glycol and maleic anhydride

A nonvolatile, vegetable-oil based chemical, acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (AESO) was investigated as a replacement of volatile and toxic styrene in one of commercial UPE resins styrene-(PG-MA) that is a mixture of styrene and a UPE plastic from propylene glycol and maleic anhydride (PG-MA). Neither AESO nor PG-MA was capable of forming a strong matrix, respectively, for glass fiber-reinforced composites. However, a mixture of AESO and PG-MA resulted in glass fiber-reinforced AESO-(PG-MA) composites that were comparable or even superior to those from styrene-(PG-MA) in terms of the flexural and tensile properties. Effects of AESO contents on the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of the glass fiber-reinforced AESO-(PG-MA) composites were investigated. Resin viscosity and resin pot life as a function of temperature were studied. The curing mechanism of the AESO-(PG-MA) resins is also discussed. (c) 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017, 134, 45056.