Behavior of Polymer Films and its Blends for Leather Finishing

Abstract

In the final stage of leather processing, many products are applied to form a protective coating. These coatings include resins such as polyacrylates, polyurethanes and casein. The composition of these materials was compared to physical-mechanical properties, as tensile strength resistance, elongation at break, toughness, hardness and thermal characterization by DSC and FTIR analysis. Tensile strength tests showed that the polyurethane resins, in general, have a higher tensile strength when compared to acrylic resins, as well as the values of toughness, indicating that these films support higher impact before the rupture of the material. The preparation of polymer-blend film had intermediate characteristics with respect to the pure components. Acrylic films tested had a higher elongation. With respect to hardness, the resins that were more flexible showed the lowest hardness. The characterization from FTIR and DSC analysis indicated the chemical groups and characteristic temperatures peaks of polyacrylates and polyurethanes.