In recent years, bio-based polymers derived from renewable resources have become increasingly important as sustainable and eco-efficient products which can replace the products based on petrochemical-derived stocks. The objective of our work was to develop novel bio-based reactive systems suitable for high performance composite materials especially epoxy systems. The most commonly used starting monomer to formulate epoxy networks is the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A, DGEBA, derived from bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin. Bio-based epichlorohydrin is commercially available. So the challenge to obtain a fully bio-based epoxy prepolymer is to replace bisphenol A by a bio-based precursor. Another interest for replacing bisphenol A by a bio-based precursor is that bisphenol A has been known to have estrogenic properties. In this study, we studied different bio-based epoxy systems and compared them to a classical DGEBA based system using, in a first step, isophorone diamine (IPD) as conventional curing agent. Bio-based epoxy prepolymers were derived from natural sugars, sorbitol and isosorbide respectively. Sorbitol polyglycidyl ether is available commercially, while isosorbide diglycidyl ether was synthesized either via conventional epoxidation (i.e. using epichlorohydrin) or via the diallyl isosorbide intermediate. Another bio-based epoxy prepolymer was derived from cardanol and is also a commercial product. Chemical structure of the bio-based epoxy prepolymers were analyzed by different analytical methods, gelation and crosslinking reactions were studied using rheological measurements and differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. Properties of the cured networks were evaluated using dynamic mechanical analysis and thermo gravimetric analysis. Influence of the bio-based epoxy prepolymer structure on the system properties as well as the influence of the crosslinking agent structure (either derived from renewable resources or bio-based ones) was discussed. Water absorption of the bio-based networks was also studied.

Récemment, les polymères obtenus à partir de ressources renouvelables ont connus un véritable engouement pour le remplacement de matériaux obtenus à partir de ressources pétrolières. L'objectif de notre étude a été de développer de nouveaux systèmes bio-sourcés réactifs, plus précisément des systèmes époxy, pour des applications dans le domaine des matériaux composites. Le monomère le plus souvent utilisé pour formuler des réseaux époxy est le diglycidyl éther de bisphenol A, DGEBA, obtenu à partir du bisphenol A et de l’épichlorhydrine. L’intérêt pour le remplacement du bisphénol A par un précurseur bio-sourcé est accentué par la toxicité de ce dernier. Dans cette étude, nous avons étudié différents systèmes obtenus à partir de prépolymères époxy bio-sourcés et les avons comparés à un système classique à base de DGEBA en utilisant l'isophorone diamine (IPD) comme agent durcisseur. Parmi les différents prépolymères époxy bio-sourcés étudiés, certains ont été obtenus à partir de dérivés polysaccharides tels que le sorbitol et l'isosorbide. Le sorbitol polyglycidyl éther est disponible commercialement, tandis que le diglycidyl éther d'isosorbide a été synthétisé soit par une voie classique faisant intervenir l’épichlorhydrine soit par l'intermédiaire du diallyle isosorbide. Un autre prépolymère époxy dérivé du cardanol a été étudié et est aussi un produit commercial. Les structures chimiques de ces prépolymères époxy bio-sourcés ont été analysées. Les phénomènes de gélification et de réticulation des systèmes obtenus à partir de ces prépolymères et de l’IPD ont été étudiés. L’influence de la structure du prépolymère bio-sourcé et de l'agent de réticulation (classique ou dérivé de ressources renouvelables) sur les propriétés des réseaux ainsi que l'absorption d'eau par ces réseaux ont également été discutés. / In recent years, bio-based polymers derived from renewable resources have become increasingly important as sustainable and eco-efficient products which can replace the products based on petrochemical-derived stocks. The objective of our work was to develop novel bio-based reactive systems suitable for high performance composite materials especially epoxy systems. The most commonly used starting monomer to formulate epoxy networks is the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A, DGEBA, derived from bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin. Bio-based epichlorohydrin is commercially available. So the challenge to obtain a fully bio-based epoxy prepolymer is to replace bisphenol A by a bio-based precursor. Another interest for replacing bisphenol A by a bio-based precursor is that bisphenol A has been known to have estrogenic properties. In this study, we studied different bio-based epoxy systems and compared them to a classical DGEBA based system using, in a first step, isophorone diamine (IPD) as conventional curing agent. Bio-based epoxy prepolymers were derived from natural sugars, sorbitol and isosorbide respectively. Sorbitol polyglycidyl ether is available commercially, while isosorbide diglycidyl ether was synthesized either via conventional epoxidation (i.e. using epichlorohydrin) or via the diallyl isosorbide intermediate. Another bio-based epoxy prepolymer was derived from cardanol and is also a commercial product. Chemical structure of the bio-based epoxy prepolymers were analyzed by different analytical methods, gelation and crosslinking reactions were studied using rheological measurements and differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. Properties of the cured networks were evaluated using dynamic mechanical analysis and thermo gravimetric analysis. Influence of the bio-based epoxy prepolymer structure on the system properties as well as the influence of the crosslinking agent structure (either derived from renewable resources or bio-based ones) was discussed. Water absorption of the bio-based networks was also studied.