1 research outputs found
PEG-<i>ran</i>-PPG Modified Epoxy Thermosets: A Simple Approach To Develop Tough Shape Memory Polymers
In
this work, we prepared thermoresponsive shape memory epoxy thermosets
by blending epoxy resin with polyÂ(ethylene glycol-<i>ran</i>-propylene glycol) random copolymer (PEG-<i>ran</i>-PPG
or RCP). Incorporation of RCP precisely tuned the temperature showing
the shape memory effect of epoxy thermoset, which was established
by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and fold-deploy test. FTIR spectroscopy
confirmed that the compatibility of the system is caused by intermolecular
hydrogen bonding and only at high RCP concentration some phase separation
starts. DMA and thermomechanical analysis provided evidence for the
interactions of RCP chains with epoxy thermoset. The impact strength
considerably increased especially for 30 and 40 wt % RCP modified
blends. Furthermore, the blends exhibited good thermal stability in
conjunction with excellent UV resistance