Bio-Based Epoxy Resins of Epoxidized Soybean oil Cured with Salicylic acid Loaded with Chitosan: Evaluation of Physical–Chemical Properties

In this work epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) based compounds were developed using salicylic acid (SAL) and 1, 3, and 5 wt% of chitosan (CHT). The chemical structures and the curing mechanisms were evaluated using Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The thermal curing in the absence of catalyst was followed using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The data show that ESO/SAL/CHT formulations with low CHT content, i.e. 1 and 3% reacted and with high reactions enthalpy. The obtained bio-resins were characterized by their water uptake, swelling ratio, crosslink density, thermal stability. These results present a new alternative for the development of bio resins based on epoxidized soybean oil, salicylic acid and chitosan, enabling potential applications such as curatives or composite materials.