Insulating Composites Made from Sulfur, Canola Oil, and Wool**

Israa Bu Najmah, Nicholas A. Lundquist, Melissa K. Stanfield, Filip Stojcevski, Jonathan A. Campbell, Louisa J. Esdaile, Christopher T. Gibson, David A. Lewis, Luke C. Henderson, Tom Hasell, Justin M. Chalker

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

An insulating composite was made from the sustainable building blocks wool, sulfur, and canola oil. In the first stage of the synthesis, inverse vulcanization was used to make a polysulfide polymer from the canola oil triglyceride and sulfur. This polymerization benefits from complete atom economy. In the second stage, the powdered polymer was mixed with wool, coating the fibers through electrostatic attraction. The polymer and wool mixture were then compressed with mild heating to provoke S−S metathesis in the polymer, which locks the wool in the polymer matrix. The wool fibers imparted tensile strength, insulating properties, and reduced the flammability of the composite. All building blocks are sustainable or derived from waste and the composite is a promising lead on next-generation insulation for energy conservation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2352-2359
Number of pages8
JournalChemSusChem
Volume14
Issue number11
Early online date25 Feb 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 8 Jun 2021

Keywords

  • flammability
  • insulation
  • inverse vulcanization
  • sulfur
  • wool

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