Preparation and application of dialdehyde nanocellulose reinforced jatropha oil based polymer emulsions as leather fatliquors

Bio-based acrylated epoxidized jatropha oil (AEJO) was developed using a solvent-free synthetic method, and the structure of the resulting product was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and proton nuclear magnetic resonance ( 1 H NMR) spectra. Subsequently, an amphiphilic polymer emulsion AEJO-AA was prepared by emulsion polymerization using acrylic acid (AA) and AEJO. Moreover, 2, 3-dialdehyde nanocellulose (DNC) was prepared and combined with AEJO-AA emulsion as a fatliquoring agent for goatskin upper leather. The fatliquored leather shows improved mechanical strength and thermal stability. When the DNC loading is 1.5 wt%, the fatliquored leather exhibits the highest tensile strength of 24.3 MPa, tear strength of 62.2 N/mm and thermal denaturation temperature (T d ) of 95.4 °C. The fogging values of the fatliquored leather satisfy the requirements of automobile seat leather. The biochemical oxygen demand (BOD 5 ) and chemical oxygen demand results indicate that the DNC/AEJO-AA emulsion is easily biodegradable. Overall, the developed DNC/AEJO-AA emulsion provides a new strategy in the production of bio-based and ecological polymer fatliquor of leather. Graphic abstract