Waterborne Polyurethane Coating and its New Applications in Plush Finishing

In this paper the anionic waterborne polyurethane (WPU) was prepared from poly(propylene) glycol, 4,4'-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, dimethylol propionic acid, and butanediol. Triethylamine was used as a neutralization agent. The chemical structure of the WPU was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR), which demonstrated that the sample with expected structure had been synthesized. The thermal properties of the WPU were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). DSC results demonstrate that the glass transition temperature of the WPU is much lower than that of the commercially used acrylate resin (PA). TGA results show that the onset temperature of thermal degradation for the WPU is 265 degrees C. The dispersion was used as a coating material for plush finishing. The adhesive properties of the WPU to the plush were evaluated by scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observation and depilation ratio test. The results indicate that the adhesion and handle of the WPU to the plush is much better than that of the PA emulsion.