Depolymerisation of liquid epoxidized natural rubber (LENR) using lanthanum hydroxide (La(OH)3)-HNT Catalyst

Abstract

A simple and versatile method is reported for the synthesis of La(OH)3 on halloysite nanotubes (HNT) for the catalytic depolymerization of liquid epoxidized natural rubber (LENR). The lanthanum nitrate was incorporated into HNT by impregnation method. The characteristics of these La(OH)3-HNT catalysts were investigated by using SEM equipped with Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet Visible Light (UV-Vis) and Photoluminescence (PL). The obtained results confirm the presence of La(OH)3 on the surface of HNT. The presence of La(OH)3 -HNT in the LENR exhibited excellent depolymerization reaction resulting in a reduction of the average molecular weight (Mw) from 18984 to 2111. The Mw was measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC).