Green chemistry in coatings: Terpene based acrylates as substitutes for petrochemical compounds

Terpene-based acrylic monomers provide a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional acrylic monomers. Due to their low volatility, they can be directly used in high-solid UV coating systems. The wide variety of monoterpenes allows for tailoring the properties of the acrylates by selecting the appropriate raw material, enabling them to match or even exceed the performance of petrochemical monomers. Novel monoterpene copolymers, synthesized with limonene-based acrylates and nopol-based methacrylate, demonstrated excellent curing performance, thermal stability, and solvent resistance. The storage and loss moduli of the respective homopolymers of the limonene-based monomers were analyzed through DMA measurements. The results indicated that these monomers yield very hard polymers with a moderate degree of cross-linking. These findings underscore the potential of terpene-based acrylates as versatile, high-performance, and sustainable substitutes for fossil-based monomers in UV-coating systems.