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Blends of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and polydimethyl siloxane rubber (PDMS), part-I: assessment of compatibility from torque rheometry and mechanical properties

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Abstract

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and polydimethyl siloxane rubber (PDMS) are two major polymers used extensively for biomedical applications. Blending of these polymers combines the superior mechanical properties, abrasion resistance, solvent resistance and aging resistance of TPU with chemical stability, inertness, flexibility and biocompatibility of PDMS. In the present investigation, an 80:20 blend of TPU and PDMS was selected for the preparation of an in situ compatibilized blend using ethylene methyl acrylate copolymer (EMA) as the compatibilizer. Effect of EMA on blends of ester type and ether type TPU with PDMS was studied. From the results obtained from torque rheometry, mechanical property evaluation, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), it was concluded that 5 wt% of compatibilizer effectively compatibilized an 80:20 blend of ester type TPU and PDMS, whereas similar blend of ether type TPU required only 2 wt% compatibilizer.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to gratefully acknowledge the valuable suggestions and advice provided by Prof Sadhan Kumar De (Chair Professor in Chemical Engineering, King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering Technology, Yanbu Industrial College, Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, P.O. Box 30436, Yanbu Industrial City, 21 477, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Krishna Prasad Rajan & Ahmed Al-Ghamdi

  2. Biomedical Technology Wing, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Poojapura, Thiruvananthapuram, 695 012, Kerala, India

    P. Ramesh

  3. Rubber Technology Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, 721302, WB, India

    G. B. Nando

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  1. Krishna Prasad Rajan
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  2. Ahmed Al-Ghamdi
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  3. P. Ramesh
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  4. G. B. Nando
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Correspondence to Krishna Prasad Rajan.

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Rajan, K.P., Al-Ghamdi, A., Ramesh, P. et al. Blends of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and polydimethyl siloxane rubber (PDMS), part-I: assessment of compatibility from torque rheometry and mechanical properties. J Polym Res 19, 9872 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-012-9872-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-012-9872-y

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