Abstract
Unsaturated poly(urethane-imide)s were prepared by the reaction of unsaturated polyurethane prepolymers with maleic anhydride. The polyurethane prepolymers were synthesized by the reaction of 4,4′-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) with unsaturated polyesters having a molecular weight of about 500 or with a mixture of unsaturated and saturated polyesters having a molecular weight of about 2000. The unsaturated polyurethane prepolymers reacted with maleic anhydride until the evolution of carbon dioxide ceased to yield unsaturated poly(urethane-imide)s. These polymers exhibited improved solubility in organic solvents and formed flexible films showing fairly good stress-strain properties. Compared to conventional polyurethanes based on MDI and poly(ethylene glycol adipate) these polymers exhibited better thermal stabilities due to the presence of the imide groups.
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