Heptyl esters of furan dicarboxylic acid as softeners

1. A composition, comprising at least two isomeric diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylates, wherein each diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylate independently satisfies at least one property selected from the group consisting of

a density of the diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylate at 20° C. is not more than 1.1 g/cm 3 ,

an intrinsic viscosity of the diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylate at 25° C. is not more than 120 mPa*s, and

when analyzed with a differential calorimeter, the diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylate has no melting signal at temperatures greater than 20° C.

2. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the isomeric diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylates satisfies all of the properties.

3. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the isomeric diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylates satisfies at least two of the properties.

4. A plasticizer or plasticizer composition, comprising the composition according to claim 1 .

5. The plasticizer or plasticizer composition according to claim 4 , wherein none of the at least two isomeric diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylates are present in a proportion of more than 99.9% by weight in an ester mixture.

6. The plasticizer or plasticizer composition according to claim 4 , wherein at least one isomeric diheptyl furan-2,5-dicarboxylate comprises a heptyl group selected from the group consisting of n-heptyl, 2-methylhexyl, 3-methylhexyl, 4-methylhexyl, 5-methylhexyl, 2,2-dimethylpentyl, 2,3-dimethylpentyl, 3,3-dimethylpentyl, 2,4-dimethyl pentyl, 3-ethylpentyl, 2,2,3-trimethylbutyl, and 2-ethyl-3-methylbutyl.

7. The plasticizer composition according to claim 4 , further comprising at least one additional plasticizer selected from the group consisting of an alkyl benzoate, a dialkyl adipate, a glyceryl ester, a trialkyl citrate, an acylated trialkyl citrate, a trialkyl mellitate, a glycol dibenzoate, a dialkyl terephthalate, a dialkyl phthalate, a dialkanoyl ester of isosorbitol, and a dialkyl ester of 1,2-, 1,3- or 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid.

8. A process of preparing the composition of claim 1 , the process comprising:

contacting a furandicarboxylic acid or a derivative thereof with an aliphatic alcohol having 7 carbon atoms, thereby obtaining a reaction mixture; and

heating the reaction mixture to a temperature of greater than 50° C. and esterifying or transesterifying the reaction mixture while removing a low molecular weight substance from the reaction mixture.

9. A process of preparing the composition according to claim 1 , the process comprising:

contacting a 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, a furan derivative thereof, or a combination thereof with an aliphatic alcohol having 7 carbon atoms, a catalyst, and an oxygen-containing component, thereby obtaining a reaction mixture; and

adjusting the reaction mixture to a temperature of greater than 0° C. and conducting an oxidative esterification.

10. A polymer composition, comprising the composition according to claim 1 and at least one polymer.

11. The polymer composition according to claim 10 , wherein the at least one polymer is selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), a polyacrylate, a fluoropolymer, polyvinyl acetate (PVAc), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), a polyvinyl acetal, a polystyrene polymer, acrylonitrile-styrene-acrylate (ASA), styrene acrylonitrile (SAN), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer (SMA), styrene-methacrylic acid copolymer, a polyolefin, polyethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), a polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polyoxymethylene (POM), polyamide (PA), polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyurethane (PU), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), a polysulphide (PSu), a biopolymer, polyhydroxybutyral (PHB), polyhydroxyvaleric acid (PHV), a polyester, starch, cellulose, a cellulose derivative, rubber, silicone, a mixture or copolymer thereof or of monomeric units thereof.

12. The polymer composition according to claim 10 , comprising a plasticizer in an amount of from 5 to 200 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the polymer composition.

13. The polymer composition according to claim 10 , comprising a copolymer of vinyl chloride with at least one monomer selected from the group consisting of vinylidene chloride, vinyl acetate, vinyl propionate, vinyl butyrate, vinyl benzoate, methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, and butyl acrylate.

14. A molding or film comprising the polymer composition according to claim 10 .

15. The molding or film according to claim 14 , wherein the film or molding is a floor covering, a wall covering, a hose, a profile, a polymer film, a roofing sheet, a sealing sheet, a cable or wire sheath, a tarpaulin, an advertising banner, synthetic leather, packaging film, a medical article, a toy, a seal, or a furnishing article.

16. A process of plasticizing a polymer, the process comprising plasticizing a polymer with the plasticizer or plasticizer composition of claim 4 .

17. The process of claim 16 , wherein the polymer is suitable for an adhesive, sealing compound, coating material, lacquer, paint, plastisol, paste, synthetic leather, floor covering, underbody protection, fabric coating, wallpaper, or ink.