A Novel Approach for the Preparation of Poly(Butylene Succinate) Microparticles

Abstract

Studies regarding sustainability are growing, making the production of bio‐based polymer products, such as poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), a promising new alternative for sustainable development and manufacture of eco‐efficient products. In this context, the main objective of the present study is the production of PBS microbeads through a water‐free suspension polycondensation processes. The obtained results indicate that it is possible to produce PBS microbeads through polycondensation in heterogeneous media, overcoming the natural mass transfer limitations related to the removal of the condensation byproduct (water) from suspended particles, and simultaneously allowing for production of condensation polymer particles in the micrometric region. Besides, the proposed process route promoted shorter reaction times than conventional polycondensations and production of PBS microparticles with controlled sizes and molar mass distributions. The produced particles presented average sizes ranging from 80 to 180 μm, with melting points ranging from 105 to 112 °C and average molar masses around 1.3 × 104 Da.

Preparation of Polymer Microparticles through Nonaqueous Suspension Polycondensations. Part II—Effects of Operating Variables on Properties of Poly(butylene succinate)

“…As shown by Dutra et al., obtained PBS microparticles presented regular spherical morphology inside the reactor, although the filtration and washing steps may eventually affect the morphology of the final PBS particles, as one can see in Figure 2 that illustrates the morphology of the obtained particles. As originally observed by Dutra et al., the final PBS product is obtained as a fine powder, formed by highly crystalline and irregular PBS particles. The irregular surfaces can be related to the fact that filtration is performed in warm conditions (to assure the removal of paraffin), which makes the particles more susceptible to deformation during manipulation.…”

“…The results presented in Table show that it is possible to produce PBS microparticles with average sizes ranging from 60 to 383 µm, which are suitable for applications in the fields of personal care and cosmetics . As shown by Dutra et al., obtained PBS microparticles presented regular spherical morphology inside the reactor, although the filtration and washing steps may eventually affect the morphology of the final PBS particles, as one can see in Figure 2 that illustrates the morphology of the obtained particles. As originally observed by Dutra et al., the final PBS product is obtained as a fine powder, formed by highly crystalline and irregular PBS particles.…”

“…It is important to observe that the present study did not intend to produce PBS resins of very large molecular weights, but to characterize how the operation variables affected the final properties of the obtained microparticles. As shown by Dutra et al., larger molecular weights could be obtained through a suitable combination of higher temperatures, longer reaction times, and addition of catalyst. Besides, the molecular weights described in the following sections were appropriate for most personal care and cosmetics applications of the obtained microparticles.…”

“…Polycondensation polymers, such as PBS, are usually produced in bulk in two steps, including esterification and transesterification reactions, with reaction times that are frequently longer than 12 h . The long reaction times are related to mass transfer constraints during the removal of condensates from the reaction medium, which can be minimized if the mass transfer areas are enlarged through suitable dispersion of the reaction system in a suspending medium .…”

“…The present study is based on a previous work that showed that it is possible to produce PBS microparticles through suspension polycondensation reactions with suitable properties for applications in the fields of personal care and cosmetics. For this reason, in this article the effects of different operation variables (such as reaction temperature, reaction time, monomer holdup, surfactant concentration, and stirring speed) on the properties of the obtained PBS product (such as particle size distributions and molecular weight distributions) prepared through suspension polycondensations are investigated for the first time.…”