Premium
Photoinduced birefringence in blends of a polyurethane bearing azobenzene moieties and a poly(amide–imide)
Author(s) -
Ceridório Lucinéia,
Cardoso Marcos R,
Pavinatto Felippe,
Carvalho Antonio JF,
Mendonça Cleber R,
Balogh Débora T
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
polymer international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.592
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1097-0126
pISSN - 0959-8103
DOI - 10.1002/pi.2054
Subject(s) - azobenzene , materials science , polyurethane , imide , thermal stability , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , polymer chemistry , amide , polyamide , birefringence , chemical engineering , composite material , polymer , organic chemistry , chemistry , optics , physics , engineering
A polyurethane (MDI‐DR19Cl) bearing azobenzene moieties was prepared by condensation of 4,4′‐diphenylmethylenediisocyanate and an azobenzene compound, 2‐chloro‐4‐nitro‐4′‐[bis‐(2‐hydroxyethyl)]amine‐azobenzene (DR19Cl). Blends of MDI‐DR19Cl and a poly(amide‐imide) were prepared and characterized by UV‐visible and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and by DSC. The purpose of using the blends was to overcome the lack of stability of cast films of pure MDI‐DR19Cl, which tend to crack on storage under ambient conditions. This was successfully achieved and, depending on blend proportions, flexible self‐standing films could be prepared after thermal treatment. Optical storage experiments performed with the blends and pure MDI‐DR19Cl cast films showed a decrease in the remnant values of photoinduced birefringence in the blends (60 % for the blend with 5 wt% MDI‐DR19Cl) compared to pure MDI‐DR19Cl (75%), but, taking into account the low content of MDI‐DR19Cl used, the results obtained are probably sufficient to show the viability of these blends in optical storage applications. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry