Morphology of Waterborne Polyurethanes Based on Poly(dimethylsiloxane)

Abstract

Waterborne polyurethanes (WBPUs) represent a class of polyurethanes (PUs), in which water is used as the dispersion medium, instead hazardous organic solvents. In this manner, the emission of volatile organic compounds is decreased, leading to the environmental preservation. Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) has a lot of useful features, such as low glass transition temperature, Tg, low surface energy, excellent biocompatibility, high thermal and oxidative stability, which is why PDMS is often used in WBPU formulations. Siloxane-modified WBPUs exhibit the properties of both, PDMS and PUs. WBPUs based on PDMS have good surface properties, such as excellent hydrophobicity, chemical resistance and low surface energy. Because of these useful features, WBPUs based on PDMS can be used as coatings, adhesives, paints, etc. In this work, a series of WBPUs was synthesized via one-step polymerization method, without a chain extension step, using acetone and water as solvents and stannous octoate as a catalyst.