Synthesis and characterization of BHETA based new polyurethanes

Recycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) by aminolysis breeds environmental benefits. In this work Polyethylene terephthalate in the form of waste fibers were subjected to depolymerization through aminolysis using excess amount of ethanolamine in the presence of sodium acetate, as catalyst. Obtained product, bis (2-hydroxy ethylene) terephthalamide (BHETA) was in its pure form with sufficiently high yields. The purified product was characterized by FTIR, (FINMR)-F-1 and (CNMR)-C-13 spectroscopy as well as melting point determination. Since catalyst and raw materials have low price, synthesis of this material is economical and could be used as diol to synthesis of polyurethanes. In this search, polyurethanes have been synthesized based on BHETA, HDI and polyethylene glycol via prepolymer method. Termogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were carried out to study thermal stability, thermal transitions, T-m and T-g of synthesized polyurethanes. Effect of BHETA content in the main chain of synthesized polyurethanes on thermal stability of polyurethanes, strength and stiffness has been evaluated. BHETA based polyurethanes show Young's modulus about 300 MPa and elongation at break as 130% due to its aromatic structure.