Waste tire based thermoreversible elastomeric networks

Abstract

The olefin metathesis is a powerful reaction to afford in one step polydienes (PD) depolymerization and furan end-chain functionalization using a furan allylic chain transfer agent (CTA). This degradation reaction proceeded successfully on waste tires to provide furan functionalized polymers that were used as secondary raw materials for elastomeric networks fabrication. To develop a circular economy approach, thermoreversible networks were prepared through the Diels−Alder (DA) chemistry by reaction of furan-f-PD and a tri-maleimide crosslinker. By heating networks starting polymers and crosslinker were recovered through a retro-Diels-Alder (r-DA) process without degradation. Same results were obtained after three DA/r-DA cycles. In addition, a total tire waste based elastomeric networks was successfully synthesized from the DA reaction of furan-f-PD issued from tire waste and a tire waste based maleimide crosslinker. They proved recyclable over three cycles.