Study of the effect of urethane-dimethacrylates structure on the morphology and properties of polymers based on them

The monomers were synthesized from monomethacrylates of glycols: mono-, di-, tri or tetraethylene one and diisocyanates: hexamethylene diisocyanate (HMDI), 4,4'-methylenebis(cyclohexyl isocyanate) (CHMDI) or 4,4'-methylenebis(phenyl isocyanate) (MDI) (Scheme A). Three homologous series of poly(urethane-dimethylacrylate) polymers [poly(UDMA)] were obtained by photopolymerization of these monomers. The effect of monomers chemical structure on selected mechanical properties (dynamic elastic modulus, Brinell hardness) and on morphology of the polymers obtained were investigated (Fig. 1-3). Polymer morphology was studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) methods (Fig. 4 and 5). XRPD method was used for quantitative description of poly(UDMA) network's heterogeneity (Fig. 6). The results show that mechanical properties of poly(UDMA) depend on monomer chemical structure, double bond conversion and dimensions of ordered zones.