Effect of Curing Time on Poly(methacrylate) Living Polymer

Abstract

Self-healing materials increase the reliability and life span of the overall systems that they are incorporated to. This capacity of the material enhances the credibility of the in-flight health assessment in aerospace platforms. Such platforms do not require visual or acoustic inspections to recover from the damages that occur during flight. This reduces the energy requirements associated with maintenance, replacement of parts, and off-line time. Poly(methacrylate) (PMMA) living polymer mixed with nanoparticles possesses miraculous properties such as minimized gas permeability, improved heat resistance, and boosted physical performance. In this study, PMMA is synthesized by the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) method and the mechanical properties of the material have been manipulated by changing the curing time. The effects of curing time on mechanical properties are examined by the stereomicroscope images and Shore D hardness tests satisfying ASTM D785 test standards.