POLY[(VINYL ALCOHOL) - (STEARIC ACID)] SYNTHESIS AND USE IN LAVENDER OIL CAPSULATION

Abstract

Block polymers are used frequently in medicine, nanotechnology, paint, cosmetic and many other fields. Generally, one of the blocks produced is hydrophilic and the other hydrophobic. With amphiphilic polymers, molecules in the lipophilic structure can be encapsulated. Encapsulation is being used industrially for the reason that it is easier to transport a substance chemically without deterioration and is less affected by environmental effects. Amphiphilic block copolymers composed of hydrophilic and hydrophobic monomer units are used in micellization. Copolymers can form different morphological structures, which can be repeated under controlled conditions, depending on the composition of the block copolymer in the aqueous medium, the concentration of the copolymer in the medium, the interactions between the hydrophilic chains forming the shell, the addition of the acid, base or salt, the organic solvent used, the polarity of the solvent used and the relative solubilities of the blocks in the solvent. In these systems, while the core acts as a repository that allows the active substances to be dissolved, the shell part provides the hydrophilic property to the whole system. With amphiphilic polymers, molecules in the lipophilic structure can be encapsulated. In the first part of this work, stearic acid substituted polyvinyl alcohol-hydrophilic lipophilic polymer was synthesized with acidic esterification reaction and the chemical structure of the polymer enlightened with ATR-FTIR. 1H-NMR method was used to determine the composition ratio of the polymer. In the second part of the study, lavender oil was added to the obtained polymer system and encapsulation was carried out after the interaction of the lavender oil and lipophilic end of polymer. The obtained capsule size analysis was performed by SEM. At the end of the work, paper coating formulations were prepared with microcapsules containing lavender oil and coated on standard office paper. The color and gloss properties of the coatings are measured. The results showed that the stearic acid substitute PVA polymer could be used in lavender oil encapsulation and made a suitable encapsulation for paper coatings.