Novel biorenewable, waterborne, castor
oil-based polyurethane dispersions (PUDs) were successfully synthesized
via homogeneous solution polymerization in methyl ethyl ketone followed
by solvent exchange with water. Small-amplitude oscillatory shear
flow experiments were used to systematically investigate the rheological
behavior of these environmentally friendly, biorenewable, aqueous
dispersions as a function of angular frequency, solid content, and
temperature. In addition, the morphology of the dispersions was investigated
at 60 °C for different time intervals using transmission electron
microscopy (TEM). The solid content and temperature were found to
significantly affect the rheological behavior of the PUDs. The composition
dependency of the complex viscosity (η*) was found to be well
described by the Krieger–Dougherty equation. Thermally induced
gelation was observed for PUDs with a solid content ≥27 wt
%. Although the viscoelastic behavior of the PUDs was well described
by the time–temperature superposition (TTS) principle in a
temperature range lower than the gel point, TTS failed to represent
the behavior of the PUDs at temperatures near the critical gel point.
The real time gelation behavior was also studied for different solid
contents of PUDs under isothermal conditions over a wide range of
angular frequencies. Furthermore, both G′
and G″ showed a power law relationship with
the angular frequency at the gel point, with critical power law exponents
similar to those predicted theoretically by percolation theory. Aggregation
and interconnection of the nano-PU particles caused the formation
of fractal gels at a critical temperature, as confirmed by TEM.