Vegetable oil-based polyols for sustainable polyurethanes

Vegetable oils (VOs) are one of the most important bio-renewable resources in the chemical industry due to their biodegradability, universal availability and low price. Using VO-based polyols to substitute petroleum-based polyols is considered a prime and novel route towards preparing sustainable polyurethane (PU). In this context, recent progress on preparing VO-based polyols and PUs is briefly summarized in this article. Especially, thiol-ene reactions allow for the synthesis of VO-based polyols with different functionalities in keeping with efficient click chemistry principles. The studies indicated that VO-based polyols and the resulting PUs can be eco-friendly families of industrially important polymers with a low environmental footprint.[graphic not available: see fulltext]