Open Access

ARTICLE

Environmentally Sustainable Vitrimer Derived from Renewable Rosin: Shape Memory, Self-Healing Performance and Hydrothermal Degradation

Yanhe Wang¹, Ruiqin Deng², Xinyan Yan^2,*

1 College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
2 School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng, China

* Corresponding Author: Xinyan Yan. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Advances in Polymer Materials: Multifunctional Design and Sustainable Applications)

Journal of Polymer Materials 2026, 43(3), 7 https://doi.org/10.32604/jpm.2026.087727

Received 22 June 2026; Accepted 29 July 2026; Issue published 24 September 2026

Abstract

To mitigate the environmental hazards of traditional petroleum thermosets and develop sustainable alternative materials, in this work, Dehydroabietylamine (DHAA), a renewable rosin derivative, was employed as the bio-based raw material to fabricate an environmentally benign vitrimer. Diglycidyl Dehydroabietylamine Epoxy Resin (DGDHAA) was first synthesized using DHAA and epichlorohydrin (ECH). The chemical structure of the synthesized DGDHAA was systematically characterized by FT-IR, ¹³C NMR, and ¹H NMR techniques. Subsequently, a bio-based vitrimer (denoted as DGDHAA/ESO-MNA) was prepared through the epoxy-anhydride curing reaction, with DGDHAA as the matrix, epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) as the toughening modifier, and methyl nadic anhydride (MNA) as the curing agent, and triethanolamine (TEOA) in this study, served not only as a catalyst but also as a source of hydroxyl groups to promote dynamic hydroxy-ester bond exchange. To optimize the material properties, the effects of different epoxy/anhydride molar ratios on the thermal stability, dynamic mechanical properties, and tensile mechanical properties of the vitrimers were investigated. The prepared vitrimers exhibited good shape memory performance and self-healing capability. Importantly, the material could undergo hydrothermal degradation, achieving a 100% degradation rate at 190°C for 6 h, which further highlights its environmentally benign and sustainable characteristics.

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Keywords

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