Long/Short Chain Mixed Cellulose Esters: Effects of Long Acyl Chain Structures on Mechanical and Thermal Properties

Long/short chain mixed cellulose esters (MCE) are practical, promising polymers with interesting properties. In the molecular design of MCE, using long acyl chains made from renewable resources is important and enhances the value of MCE as sustainable materials. In this study, we focused on two types of renewable long acyl chains for MCE: the aromatic 3-pentadecylphenoxy acetyl (PA) group derived from cardanol extracted from cashew nutshells and the aliphatic stearoyl (St) group made from vegetable oils. Using these long acyl chains and the acetyl (Ac) group as a short acyl chain, we synthesized PA/Ac MCE (P-series) and St/Ac MCE (S-series) in LiCl/DMAc medium. The thermal and mechanical analyses revealed that a mixed substitution of long and short acyl chains prevented the crystallization of the long acyl chain moieties in MCE. The P-series had slightly higher bending strength and glass transition temperature than those of the S-series but showed low impact strength because of the existence of the aromatic ring in the PA group, which caused an increase in the stiffness of the cellulose backbone and the extra intermolecular interaction. However, the S-series without aromatic rings showed remarkably improved impact strength with sufficient balanced mechanical properties for use in durable products due to its composition of low crystalline long acyl chain moieties.