Thermo-oxidative stability of waterborne polyurethanes with catalysts of different selectivity evaluated by non-isothermal thermogravimetry

Abstract

Thermogravimetry was used for the evaluation of the thermo-oxidative stability of waterborne polyurethanes (wbPUR) containing catalysts of different selectivity. From Arrhenius plots, activation energies of between 50 and 120 kJ mol-1 for wbPUR were determined, depending on the temperature interval, selectivity of the catalyst and degree of degradation. Waterborne polyurethanes without catalyst showed lower thermal stability than waterborne polyurethanes with catalysts of different selectivity. Non-isothermal thermogravimetry indicated the presence of different degradation processes and enabled the kinetics parameters at higher degrees of degradation to be evaluated.

Keywords

• waterborne polyurethanes
• thermo-oxidation
• thermogravimetry
• thermal stability
• activation energy