Sustainable Biopolymer Based on Tung Oil and Tung Free Fatty Acids for Hair Tensile Enhancement

    March 2026 in “ ACS Applied Bio Materials
    Xuejiao Cao, Yanting Yin, Jonathan A. Campbell, Xuan Luo, Y. Tang, Colin L. Raston
    TLDR The TO-TF copolymer strengthens damaged hair effectively and sustainably.
    This study explores the development of a sustainable biopolymer using Tung oil (TO) and Tung free fatty acids (TF) for hair tensile enhancement. The TO-TF copolymer, created through a vortex fluidic device-assisted process, forms a homogeneous film that enhances thermal stability and mechanical resilience. When applied to bleached hair, the TO-TF emulsion significantly improves mechanical properties, increasing yield stress from 89 to 124 MPa and Young's modulus by over 40%, without affecting fiber elongation. These findings suggest that the TO-TF copolymer is a promising eco-friendly solution for reinforcing damaged hair.
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