Jonggeun Sung

Synthesis and Characterization of Amphiphilic Reduced Graphene Oxide with Epoxidized Methyl Oleate

Amphiphilic reduced graphene oxide is obtained by oleo-functionalization with epoxidized methyl oleate (renewable feedstock) using a green process. The excellent diverse solvent-dispersivity of the oleo-reduced amphiphilic graphene and its reduction chemistry are confirmed in this study. Oleo-reduction of amphiphilic graphene is amenable to industrially viable processes to produce future graphene-based polymer composites and systems.

UV-Curable, High-Shear Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives Derived from Acrylated Epoxidized Soybean Oil

Several oleo-based pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSA) were studied as substitutes for current petroleum-based PSAs; however, PSAs derived from plant oils present challenges, such as relatively low biobased contents (20–90%) and complex processes (i.e., purifying, emulsifying, and drying steps). This paper demonstrates the possibility of transparent PSAs from neat acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (AESO) via fast and simple UV free-radical polymerization with 97–100% biobased contents. In this study, we controlled the degree of free radical polymerization by modulating the amount of UV irradiation to obtain a balanced cohesion and adhesion strength for PSA applications. This AESO PSA tape on a polyester film carrier had better peel and significantly higher shear strength on glass surfaces compared with a commercial reusable tape (Post-it®, 3M, St. Paul, MN, USA). The adhesion of the AESO PSA corresponded to its dynamic rheological properties. In addition, the adhesion/cohesion behavior of the PSAs was characterized using the Johnson-Kendall-Roberts (JKR) technique.