In Germany, European Coatings reported that the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT) and Henkel produced new synthetic building blocks for innovative, bio-based adhesives that can be de-adhered on the basis of carbohydrates and vegetable oils.
The report noted that such reversible bonds would greatly enhance the ease of repair and recyclability of electronic products or household appliances, for example.
The researchers also obtained interesting secondary results, particularly with the development of a new, highly selective catalytic process for the production of divinyl ethers. The project was funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) through the project management organisation Fachagentur Nachwachsende Rohstoffe (FNR).
In the Biovin project, new diols and polyols were successfully produced in high yields and at low cost from commercially available, bio-based platform chemicals. The researchers pursued two approaches with these intermediate products: firstly, they tested the polyols as reactive components in polyurethane adhesives. The resulting polyester polyols were characterised by similar properties and key figures to comparable petrochemical compounds, the report added.
On the other hand, the diols and polyols were processed into new, bio-based, multifunctional divinyl ethers (DVE)
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Tags: bio-based adhesives, Germany, Henkel, Leibniz Institute for Catalysis
Category: Research
