A Ternary\nBio-Based Monomer toward the Polyesters\nwith High UV Shielding and Water-Degradation Properties

Developing renewable monomers for preparing polyesters\nwith high\nUV shielding and hydrolytic degradability is a challenging topic.\nHerein, a ternary cyclic monomer (denoted as FBPC) containing one\nfuran and two pyrrolidones was prepared by an aza-Michael addition\nreaction using biobased furan diamine and dimethyl itaconate (DMI).\nFBPC was melt polymerized with various diols to prepare homopolyesters\nwith a number-average molecular mass (<i>M</i><sub>n</sub>) in the range of 22.4–30.3 kDa. The homopolyesters based\non FBPC presented excellent UV shielding properties, with a maximum\nshielding cutoff of 398 nm, which is significantly superior to monofuran-based\npolyesters, such as poly(ethylene furanoate) (PEF) and poly(methyl\n5-[(2-hydroxyethyl)-sulfanyl]furan-2-carboxylate) (pMSF). The hydrophilic\npyrrolidone rings in FBPC enhance the hydrolytic sensitivity of the\nhomopolyesters, giving them complete degradation within 130 days.\nThen, FBPC was copolymerized with poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT)\nto prepare a series of copolyesters with <i>M</i><sub>n</sub> of 23.9–42.7 kDa. The UV shielding and hydrolytic degradation\nof PBT were significantly improved by adding a ternary cyclic monomer.\nIn addition, FBPC was effective in toughening PBT without changing\nthe thermal stability, and the toughness effect far exceeded those\nof other sugar-derived cyclic monomers. The mechanical, UV shielding,\nand hydrolytic degradation properties of the copolyesters can be adjusted\ndepending on FBPC content. Overall, FBPC is an effective biobased\nprecursor that can offer new solutions for improving polyester properties,\nincluding UV shielding and hydrolytic degradation.