Polyureas by interfacial polycondensation: preparation and properties

Abstract

This paper concerns poly(hexamethylene) ureas produced by the technique of interfacial polycondensation. The polymer has been produced under various conditions of preparation and aspects of its structure have been elucidated using x-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, and other thermal analyses such as ther-mogravimetric analysis. The polymer has been shown to be a high-melting thermoplastic, with a melting point of about 285°C. The polymer is semicrystalline. The rate at which the polymerization takes place has an important influence on the crystal structure and the degree of crystallinity of the polymer as formed, and hence offers the possibility of manipulating the structure through a choice of preparation conditions. Chemical treatment of the formed polymer is another possible way of manipulating the structure, and some exploratory experiments on end capping show promise in this direction.