Effects of polydimethylsiloxane concentration on properties of polyurethane/polydimethylsiloxane hybrid dispersions

A series of waterborne polyurethane (WPU) derived from isophorone isocyanate and poly(tetramethylene glycol) were modified by hydroxyl-terminated polydimethylsiloxane (HPMS). The solutions were then cast into films named as PUHS. Rheological behavior of the emulsions were studied using Rheometer and morphology was studied with transmission electron microscope. Meanwhile, the casting films were prepared from the WPU/HPMS hybrid dispersions, and their glass transition behavior, miscibility, water resistance, and medium resistance were studied with differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), wideangle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), and so on. The results revealed that the emulsions' particle size decreases with increasing HPMS content and the particles are more easily affixed to each other when the HPMS content is more than 15%, and emulsions are endowed with pseudoplasticity and thixotropy. WAXD and DSC figures manifested that the casting films all exhibited a certain degree of miscibility. The degrees of crystallinity (x,) decreased with increasing HPMS content, and the PUHS films were almost amorphous. It is noticed that water and medium absorption increased in the HPMS/PU compared to pure PU, which demonstrate that the membrane surfaces have excellent water and chemical medium repellency. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.Polymer ScienceSCI(E)EI6ARTICLE65538-554410