Castor Oil Based Drug Delivery Systems

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Gayathri

Levosulpiride (LSP) is a hydrophobic benzamide derivative used in the treatment of schizophrenia. In order to enhance the drug absorption and bioavailability, scientists from India did a research to formulate castor oil based globule.

Results showed that at a certain ratio of castor oil, polyethylene glycol and Tween 20, the formulation had shown uniform globule size, no interactions of LSP with Self Nano Emulsifying Drug Delivery System components and a higher pharmacokinetic parameter than that of commercial preparation.

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Ricinoleic Acid Based Electrospun Fibres

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Gayathri

Ricinoleic acid, derived from castor oil has an anti-inflammatory action following topical application. However ricinoleic acid goes rancid when it is exposed to oxygen. Hence scientists from Egypt performed an experiment to encapsulate ricinoleic acid into ethyl cellulose (EC) electrospun fibres. Electrospinning parameters of EC were optimized to obtain bead-free fibres.

RA at different concentrations was encapsulated into EC fibres. Release profile was reported and encapsulation was demonstrated via morphological analysis.

New Catalyst for Biodiesel Production from Castor Oil

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Gayathri

Scientists from Brazil performed an experiment to optimize and investigate the biodiesel production from castor oil using microwave-assisted hybrid transesterfication process under various conditions such as microwave power, treatment time, ethanol:oil ratio and catalyst concentration (KOH).

Results showed that under optimal conditions the predicted biodiesel production was found to be 95% with a desirability value of 0.998.

New Castor Oil/PCL Based Bio-PU Foam

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Gayathri

Scientists from Korea performed an experiment to fabricate castor oil/PCL based bio-polyurethane foam reinforced with nano cellulose. PU foam based on biomaterials was investigated to replace traditional petroleum-based polyol. Polyols were synthesized from castor oil (CO) and polycaprolactone (PCL). In addition, the effects of the nanocellulose on the thermal and mechanical properties of CO-based PU foam were investigated.

Results showed that addition of the nanocellulose could be an effective way to improve the mechanical and thermal properties of PU foams.

New Castor Oil Based Curing Agent

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Gayathri

Castor oil-derived decanediamide, as a novel flexible epoxy curing agent, was synthesized by scientists from China through the method of esterization with methanol and ammonolysis with ammonia. The chemical structure and thermal properties of this novel curing agent were confirmed by FTIR.

The results showed that the prepared decanediamide had a high yield of 85.4%, and the epoxy resin cured by the decanediamide revealed a slight decrease in the mechanical properties and thermal stability, and a longer pot life at high temperature compared with that of a conventional epoxy curing agent.

Sebacic Acid Market Size to Exceed 130 Kilo Tons By 2023

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Gayathri

Sebacic acid size was estimated over 100 kilo tons in 2014 and is likely to exceed 130 kilo tons by 2023. Polyamide application witnessed the highest sebacic acid market consumption in 2014 and is likely to gain steady rates over the forecast period.

Shift in trend towards manufacturing biobased polymers from renewable sources is a key driver for the growth of sebacic acid market. Sebacic acid is used in wide applications such as cosmetics, plasticizers, biopolyamides production etc.

Selective Conversion of Castor Oil Derived Ricinoleic Acid Methyl Ester into Jet Fuel

Posted on June 22, 2016 by Gayathri

Recent research shows production of jet fuel from ricinoleic acid methyl ester.

Experiments conducted earlier have shown the possibility of producing jet fuel from castor oil or hydro processing castor oil.

Now scientists from China have found that jet fuel could be produced from castor oil derived ricinoleic acid methyl ester. A unique hydroxyl group in the ricinoleic acid chain induced a special thermal rearrangement reaction in medium chain fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) and heptanal formation. This reaction was used as a starting point for the production of jet fuel.

Results showed that the carbon selectivity in the castor oil to jet fuel process was as high as 90%.

New Castor Oil Segmented Thermoplastic Polyurethane with Controlled Mechanical Properties

Posted on June 9, 2016 by Gayathri

Researchers from Finland have found a method to produce novel castor oil segmented thermoplastic polyurethanes which have controlled mechanical properties.

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is an elastomer that is fully thermoplastic. Like all thermoplastic elastomers, TPU is elastic and melt-processable. TPU is a linear segmented block copolymer composed of hard and soft segments. The hard segment can be either aromatic or aliphatic. The soft segment can either be a polyether or polyester type, depending on the application.

The new study shows that it is possible to produce thermoplastic polyurethanes using castor oil via polyaddition approach where the formation of prepolymers needs to be carried out with the addition of small amount of castor oil and excess of diisocyanate in the very first step. This is followed by the addition of the other polyols and finally a low molecular weight chain extender.

Results showed that the synthesized polyurethanes exhibited good biocompatibility and high transparency.

New Method for Production of Castor Oil Polyurethane

Posted on June 9, 2016 by Gayathri

Recent study shows that a two-step mediation of castor oil could overcome the problem of polyaddition threshold of castor oil during polyurethane formation.

The study has been conducted by scientists from India who have found that the mediation facilitates formation of polyurethane systems directly from castor oil without the need for triricinolein chain extension or the use of supplementary hydroxyl compounds.

The process involves refluxing castor oil with n-butyl lithium in the presence of a solvent followed by water addition.

Results showed that the mediation introduces two new compounds in castor oil namely, a lithiated diglyceride and a lithium salt of fatty acid. Characterization studies of the newly synthesized polyurethane were also carried out.

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Stable Polyanhydride Synthesized from Sebacic Acid & Ricinoleic Acid

Posted on June 2, 2016 by Gayathri

Polyanhydrides are a class of biodegradable polymers that are usually unstable and prone to hydrolytic degradation and depolymerisation. They need to be stored at -20°C, packed under inert atmosphere until use.

Now researchers from Israel have found a new stable polyanhydride obtained from sebacic acid and ricinoleic acid. The new stable polyanhydride was synthesized with alternating ester anhydride structure that is stable at 25 °C for over 18 months. The copolymer is also stable in chloroform solution and under γ-irradiation.

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