POS9-0533
Structure-property relationships in reprocessable microphase-separated polar/nonpolar copolymers based on Diels-Alder chemistry
Topic
S9. Polymer Technology for Sustainability
When and Where
Sep 30, 2026
08:30 - 09:30
Room 301 (Grand Ballroom)
Session Chairs
Heesuk KIM
Jinhye BAE
Presenter(s)
Kyung Rok Han (Kyungpook National University)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
In this study, microphase-separated polar/nonpolar copolymers were synthesized to investigate the detailed relationship among thermo-mechanical properties, self-healing performance, rheological behaviors, and microphase separation morphology. To achieve this objective, two random vinyl/acrylate copolymers were synthesized via free radical polymerization: (i) a polar copolymer (PfW) composed of 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and furfuryl methacrylate (FMA), and (ii) a non-polar copolymer (PfO) composed of styrene (St), n-butyl methacrylate (BMA), and FMA. These copolymers were crosslinked with a synthesized bis-maleimide crosslinker via a Diels-Alder (DA) reaction to introduce self-healing capabilities. Four types of crosslinked copolymer networks were prepared: (a) a crosslinked polar copolymer (PfW-X) and (b) a crosslinked non-polar copolymer (PfO-X) with homogeneous structures, and crosslinked polar/nonpolar copolymers with heterogeneous structures, including (c) PfWO-X prepared by solvent-free blending and (d) PfWO-XS with solvent-assisted blending. The correlation between thermo-mechanical properties and self-healing performance was evaluated using a UTM with dog-bone-shaped specimens and DSC by measuring glass transition temperature (Tg) and retro-Diels-Alder temperature (TrDA). In addition, microphase separation phenomena were examined by AFM phase imaging through phase images and TEM and the rheological/viscoelastic behavior was characterized using a rheometer and DMA. In addition, the reprocessing efficiency of these copolymers was investigated through a thermal compression method using a hot press and a solvent-assisted method at TrDA. (Acknowledgement: Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy of the Republic of Korea (RS-2024-00430401, RS-2025-11162970), the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning(KETEP) and the Ministry of Climate, Energy & Environment(MCEE) of the Republic of Korea (No. RS-2022-KP002719))
