Low‐modulus siloxane–polyurethanes. Part II. Effect of chain extender structure on properties and morphology

A series of six polyurethanes were prepared to study the effect of silicon chain extender structure on properties and morphology of siloxane–polyurethanes. Polyurethanes were prepared by a two‐step bulk polymerization without a catalyst. The soft segment of the polyurethanes was based on an 80:20 (w/w) mixture of α,ω‐bis(6‐hydroxyethoxypropyl) polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS, MW 966) and poly(hexamethylene) oxide (MW 714). The hard segment was based on 4,4′‐methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and a 60:40 molar mixture of 1,4‐butanediol (BDO) and a silicon chain extender. Silicon chain extenders (SCE) investigated were 1,3‐bis(4‐hydroxybutyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxane (BHTD), 1,3‐bis(3‐hydroxypropyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxane (BPTD), 1,4‐bis(3‐hydroxypropyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisilylethylene (HTDE), 1,3‐bis(6‐hydroxyethoxypropyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxane (BETD). All polyurethanes were clear and transparent with number average molecular weights between 72,000 to 116,000. Incorporation of the silicon chain extender resulted in polyurethanes with low‐modulus and high elongation. This was achieved without significant compromise in ultimate tensile strength in all cases, except BETD. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results showed that the silicon chain extenders did not significantly disrupt the hard segment crystallinity, but exhibited a unique morphological feature where SCE‐based hard segments formed separate domains, which may be the primary reason for achieving low modulus without significant compromise in strength. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 87: 1092–1100, 2003     

Synthesis,structure, and properties of segmented carborane‐containing polyurethanes

Novel segmented carborane‐containing polyurethane (PUR 2–5) is synthesized from hydroxyl‐terminated carborane‐containing prepolymer (P3) as soft segment and isocyanate‐terminated carborane‐containing prepolymer (P5) as hard segment by different ratio of P3 and P5. The prepared carborane‐containing polyarylesters and polyurethanes (PURs) are characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). Their mechanical properties and thermal stability are measured, while the dosage of carborane biphenol is 5–10 wt %, the tensile strength is up to 20 MPa, and thermal gravimetric analyzer (TGA) curves indicate that the carborane group effectively reduces the degradation rate of carborane‐containing polyurethane, which is fairly stable above 300°C and with char yield exceeding 40%. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42227.     

Effect of different isocyanates on the properties of soy‐based polyurethanes

New types of polyurethanes were prepared by reacting soybean oil‐based polyol and different isocyanates. The polyurethanes can be used as foams, elastomers, coatings, adhesives, etc. Their properties strongly depend on crosslinking density and the structure of isocyanates. Aromatic triisocyanates impart the highest density, glass transition, modulus, and tensile strength, but have the lowest elongation at break, swelling in toluene, and impact resistance. Aliphatic triisocyanates and diisocyanates give rubbery materials with the highest elongation at break, highest swelling, and the lowest tensile strength. Polyurethanes with aromatic and cycloaliphatic diisocyanates were similar in properties, with values between those of the two groups. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 2912–2916, 2003     

Synthesis and characterization of phosphorus‐containing waterborne polyurethanes: Effects of the organophosphonate content on the flame retardancy,morphology, and film properties

A series of waterborne polyurethanes (WPUs) with different contents of reactive organophosphonate were well prepared. Their structures were characterized by Fourier transform infrared and ¹H‐NMR spectroscopy. Thermogravimetry and derivative thermogravimetry revealed that the WPU films containing phosphorus possessed lower onset and maximum degradation temperatures but higher char yields. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis suggested phase mixing of the hard and soft domains. The mechanical properties decreased with increasing amount of organophosphonate, whereas the limiting oxygen index results of the WPU films indicate that the flame retardancy was improved significantly by the incorporation of organophosphonate. The water uptake values of the organophosphonate‐containing WPU films were higher than those of the phosphorus‐free ones, whereas the static contact angles of the films indicated that the surface hydrophilic properties were not affected by segmenting in this phosphorus‐containing oligomer. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

New polymer syntheses. Part 7. New unsaturated polyurethanes: synthesis and characterization†

A novel series of polyurethanes was prepared via step-growth solution polymerization, by reaction of arylidene monomers, e g 2,5 bis(4-hydroxybenzylidene)cyclopentanone ( I ), 2,5-divanillylidenecyclopentanone ( II ), 2,6-bis(4-hydroxybenzylidene)cyclohexanone ( III ), 2,6-divanillylidenecyclohexanone ( IV ) or 2,7-bis(4-hydroxybenzylidene)cycloheptanone ( V ) with diisocyanates such as toluylene diisocyanate and methylene bis(4-phenylisocyanate). To characterize these polymers, the corresponding model compounds were prepared from monomers I–V and phenylisocyanate. The polymers were characterized by reduced viscosity measurements, IR spectroscopy, ¹H NMR, solubility and determination of their crystallinity. Characterization of the model compounds was accomplished by elemental analysis, IR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The thermal stabilities of the polymers were evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis. The morphology of one of these polymers was examined by scanning electron microscopy. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry     

Synthesis and structural peculiarities of 1,1‐dimethylhydrazine‐based polyurethanes

Novel polyurethanes (PUs) based on poly(oxytetramethylene glycol), 4,4′‐methylenediphenyl diisocyanate, and 1,1‐dimethylhydrazine (DMH) were prepared. Stoichiometric (1 : 1) and nonstoichiometric (2 : 1 to 20 : 1) prepolymer/DMH ratios were studied. The number‐average molecular masses and possible structures of the obtained polymers were evaluated by potentiometric nonaqueous titration analysis of terminal groups, the Kieldal method (the evaluation of the nitrogen atom content), the aminolysis method, viscosimetry, IR spectroscopy, rheology, and small‐angle X‐ray scattering. Only in the case of the stoichiometric (1 : 1) ratio was a low‐molecular‐mass PU with a linear structure formed, whereas for all studied nonstoichiometric ratios, PUs with branched structures were formed. The level of hard and flexible block segregation increased with the increase in the prepolymer/DMH ratio. Dielectric results for the dynamic glass transition and water sorption measurements provided additional support to the structural studies. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Low‐modulus siloxane‐based polyurethanes. I. Effect of the chain extender 1,3‐bis(4‐hydroxybutyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxane (BHTD) on properties and morphology

A series of eight polyurethane elastomers was prepared using a two‐step bulk polymerization procedure to investigate the effect of the siloxane chain extender 1,3‐bis(4‐hydroxybutyl)1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxane (BHTD) on polyurethane properties and morphology. All polyurethanes were based on 40 wt % hard segment derived from 4,4′‐methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and a mixture of 1,4‐butanediol (BDO) and BHTD in varying molar ratios. The soft segment was based on an 80 : 20 (w/w) mixture of the macrodiols α,ω‐bis(6‐hydroxyethoxypropyl)polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS, MW 965) and poly(hexamethylene oxide) (PHMO, MW 714). Polyurethanes were characterized by size‐exclusion chromatography, tensile testing, differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, and FTIR spectroscopy. Clear and transparent polymers were produced in all cases with number‐average molecular weights in the range of 90,000 to 111,000. The ultimate tensile strength decreased only slightly (15%), but Young's modulus and flexural modulus decreased by 76 and 72%, respectively, compared with that of the pure BDO extended polyurethanes as the amount of BHTD was increased to 40 mol %. This change resulted in “softer” and more elastic polyurethanes. Polyurethanes with BHTD contents above 40 mol % were more elastic but had poor tensile and tear strengths. A 60 : 40 molar ratio of BDO : BHTD produced a “soft” polyurethane, which combined good tensile strength and flexibility. The DSC and DMTA results confirmed that the incorporation of BHTD as part of the hard segment yielded polyurethanes with improved compatibility between hard and soft segments. IR data indicated that the amount of hard segments soluble in the soft‐segment phase increased with increasing BHTD, contributing to the improved phase mixing. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 83: 736–746, 2002     

Physical properties and morphology of crosslinked polyurethane synthesized from para‐phenylene diisocyanate and polyether polyol

A series of crosslinked polyurethanes (PUs) were synthesized from para‐phenylene diisocyanate, 2‐(hydroxymethyl)‐2‐ethyl propane‐1,3‐diol (TMP), and butane‐1,4‐diol as the hard segments and poly(oxytetramethylene glycol) as the soft segments. The effects of TMP on the physical properties and microphase structure of the PUs were studied with dynamic mechanical analysis, Fourier transform infrared–attenuated total reflection spectroscopy, small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS), and mechanical testing. We found that the storage modulus, hydrogen bonding with carbonyl groups, SAXS intensity, and hysteresis values decreased with increasing TMP; this indicated that the degree of microphase separation decreased with the increasing crosslinking density introduced by TMP. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 45241.     

Study on the morphology structure and properties of aqueous polyurethane modified by poly(dimethyl siloxane)

In this study, a series of aqueous polyurethane modified by poly(dimethyl siloxane) PDMS were synthesized, which were based on polyoxytetramethylene glycol (PTMG), isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI), dimethylol propionic acid(DMPA), and PDMS. The copolymer was characterized by FTIR and the fraction of hydrogen bonded carbonyl group was determined through decomposition of C?O stretching. Energy dispersive X‐ray analyzer (EDX) was used to investigate the siloxane concentration on the surface and bulk regions. The morphology of aqueous polyurethane before and after modification was studied by SAXS, including the interface between soft and hard micro‐domain, the size and shape of the dispersive particles, as well as the degree of the phase separation. Influence on the morphology structure of aqueous polyurethane in different type and content of organic silicone was studied. It was shown that the degree of hydrogen bonding and phase separation of aqueous polyurethane decreased after the introduction the PDMS resulted from the migration of PDMS to the surface of the film. Therefore, water resistance improved a lot after the introduction of PDMS with different structures, and the tensile strength and elongation of APDMS(PDMS terminated by hydroxyalkyl) decreased while those of EPDMS(PDMS terminated by hydroxyl polyether) appeared little increase at low content and than decreased. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Thermal and mechanical properties of polyisobutylene‐based thermoplastic polyurethanes

We investigated thermal and mechanical properties of thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs) with the soft segment comprising of both polyisobutylene (PIB) and poly(tetramethylene)oxide (PTMO) diols. Thermal analysis reveals that the hard segment in all the TPUs investigated is completely amorphous. Significant mixing between the hard and soft segments was also observed. By adjusting the ratio between the hard and soft segments, the mechanical properties of these TPUs were tuned over a wide range, which are comparable to conventional polyether‐based TPUs. Constant stress creep and cyclic stress hysteresis analysis suggested a strong dependence of permanent deformation on hard segment content. The melt viscosity correlation with shear rate and shear stress follows a typical non‐Newtonian behavior, showing decrease in shear viscosity with increase in shear rate. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 891‐897, 2013     

Effect of the diisocyanate structure and the molecular weight of diols on bio‐based polyurethanes

Bio‐based polyurethanes (PU) containing poly(ε‐caprolactone) diol (PCL) and hydroxyl telechelic natural rubber (HTNR) were synthesized. The effect of the diisocyanate structure and the molecular weights of diols on the mechanical properties of PU were investigated. Three different molecular structures of diisocyanate were employed: an aliphatic diisocyanate (hexamethylene diisocyanate, HDI), an aromatic diisocyanate (toluene‐2,4‐diisocyanate, TDI) and a cycloalkane diisocyanate (isophorone diisocyanate, IPDI). Two molecular weights of each diol were selected. When HDI was employed, a crystalline PU was generated while asymmetrical structures of TDI and IPDI provided an amorphous PU. The presence of crystalline domains was responsible of a change in tensile behavior and physical properties. PU containing TDI and IPDI showed a rubber‐like behavior: low Young's modulus and high elongation at break. The crystalline domains in PU containing HDI acted as physical crosslinks, enhancing the Young's modulus and reducing the elongation at break, and they are responsible of the plastic yielding. The crystallinity increased the tear strength, the hardness and the thermal stability of PU. There was no significant difference between the TDI and IPDI on the mechanical properties and the physical characteristics. Higher molecular weight of PCL diol changed tensile behavior from the rubber‐like materials to the plastic yielding. Thermal and dynamic mechanical properties were determined by using DSC, TGA and DMTA. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Effect of the hard‐segment structure on the dielectric relaxation of crosslinked polyurethanes

Two series of crosslinked polyurethanes based on poly(tetramethylene ether) glycol soft segments and hexamethylene diisocyanate/1,4‐butane diol and glycerin or castor oil as a hard segments were synthesized, and their dielectric properties were examined. We examined the influence of the structural heterogeneity of the copolymers (as a function of the quantity and structure of the hard segments and crosslinking density, as measured by comonomer composition), frequency, and temperature as experimental variables by observing changes in the dielectric behavior. Two relaxation peaks were observed in the temperature range of −30 to 40°C for polyurethanes with various hard‐segment contents. The dangling chains of the castor oil presented a plasticizing effect that was exerted during the relaxation processes, an effect that was studied. It was found that both the amount and the structure of the hard segment strongly affected the dielectric behavior. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Polybutadiene‐based polyurethanes with controlled properties: preparation and characterization

A series of segmented polyurethanes was prepared from the new commercial product KRASOL LBH (linear liquid polybutadiene terminated with secondary hydroxy groups), aromatic diisocyanates, and an aliphatic low‐molecular‐weight diol. Three types of networks were prepared, with the nature of the crosslinks varied from purely chemical to physical, with a continuous transition to “combined” networks containing both crosslink types. Potassium 2‐ethyl hexanoate was used as a catalyst of the in situ formation of trifunctional isocyanurate groups (by cyclotrimerization of isocyanate groups). It was confirmed that mechanical, thermal, and swelling properties are considerably influenced by the ratio of chemical to physical crosslink concentration. The best balance of stress–strain properties was obtained for “combined” networks at a NCO–OH molar ratio of 1.10 when only a few chemical crosslinks are present in predominantly physically crosslinked networks. The presence of thermally stable isocyanurate groups mainly influences the storage shear modulus at elevated temperatures. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering confirmed the two‐phase structure of polyurethanes with a periodicity of 6–8 nm. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 77: 381–389, 2000     

Effect of chain extender structure on the properties and morphology of polyurethanes based on H12MDI and mixed macrodiols (PDMS–PHMO)

The effect of chain extender structure on properties and morphology of α,ω‐bis(6‐hydroxyethoxypropyl) polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and poly(hexamethylene oxide) (PHMO) mixed macrodiol‐based aliphatic polyurethane elastomers was investigated using tensile testing, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). All polyurethanes were based on 50 wt % of hard segment derived from 4,4′‐methylenecyclohexyl diisocyanate (H₁₂MDI) and a chain extender mixture. 1,4‐Butanediol was the primary chain extender, while one of 1,3‐bis(4‐hydroxybutyl)tetramethyldisiloxane (BHTD), 1,3‐bis(3‐hydroxypropyl)tetramethyldisiloxane (BPTD), hydroquinonebis(2‐hydroxyethyl)ether (HQHE), 1,3‐bis(3‐hydroxypropyl)tetramethyldisilylethylene (HTDE), or 2,2,3,3,4,4‐hexafluoro‐1,5‐pentanediol (HFPD) each was used as a secondary chain extender. Two series of polyurethanes containing 80 : 20 (Series A) and 60 : 40 (Series B) molar ratios of primary and secondary chain extenders were prepared using one‐step bulk polymerization. All polyurethanes were clear and transparent and had number‐average molecular weights between 56,000 and 122,100. Incorporation of the secondary chain extender resulted in polyurethanes with low flexural modulus and high elongation. Good ultimate tensile strength was achieved in most cases. DSC and DMTA analyses showed that the incorporation of a secondary chain extender disrupted the hard segment order in all cases. The highest disruption was observed with HFPD, while the silicon‐based chain extenders gave less disruption, particularly in Series A. Further, the silicon chain extenders improved the compatibility of the PDMS soft segment phase with the hard segment, whereas with HFPD and HQHE, this was not observed. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 2979–2989, 1999     

Segmented and nonsegmented polyurethanes: Polyaddition products of 4,4′‐bis(2‐hydroxyethoxy)diphenyl ether and 1,6‐hexanediisocyanate

New linear polyurethanes (PUs) derived from 4,4′‐bis(2‐hydroxyethoxy)diphenyl ether (4‐HEDE) and 1,6‐hexanediisocyanate (HDI) were synthesized by either melt or solution polymerization. We found that the properties of PUs obtained are dependent mainly on the kind of organic solvent, contribution of the catalyst, and concentration of the monomers used. Good results are obtained using aprotic solvent‐N,N‐dimethylformamide, ∼ 30 wt % concentration of monomers, dibutyltin dilaurate as a catalyst, and conducting the process at 90–100°C for 4 h. This article presents basic properties of the series of PUs obtained. Thermal properties of the polymers were investigated by means of thermal gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. Molecular weight distribution was determined by gel permeation chromatography. Shore hardness and tensile test results are also presented. The structure of the resulting products was confirmed by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X‐ray diffractometry. We also present the properties of copolyurethanes type 4‐HEDE/HDI/1,6‐hexanediol or 4‐HEDE/HDI/polytetramethylene oxide containing variable amounts of 1,6‐hexanediol or polytetramethylene oxide (M _n ∼ 650) synthesized in the optimal conditions established earlier for PU 4‐HEDE/HDI. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 71: 83–91, 1999     

Effect of diisocyanate on pyridine containing shape memory polyurethanes based on N,N‐bis(2‐hydroxylethyl)isonicotinamide

This article demonstrates a comparative investigation about the effect of diisocyanate on pyridine containing shape memory polyurethanes (Py‐SMPUs), which are synthesized with N,N‐bis(2‐hydroxylethyl)isonicotinamide (BINA) and four different diisocyanates: 1,6‐hexanediisocyante (HDI), isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI), methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), and tolylene diisocyanate (TDI). Results show that all BINA–SMPU systems have amorphous reversible phase. Comparatively, the MDI–BINA and TDI–BINA systems show higher T_g; and the HDI–BINA and IPDI–BINA systems show better thermal stability. In addition, the HDI–BINA and the IPDI–BINA systems exhibit good thermal‐induced shape memory effect and good moisture‐sensitive shape memory effect due to their better moisture absorption properties. Particularly, the HDI–BINA system has better response speed and better shape recovery. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40721.     

Thermoplastic polyurethanes with controlled morphology based on methylenediphenyldiisocyanate/isosorbide/butanediol hard segments

Isosorbide, a cyclic, rigid and renewable diol, was used as a chain extender in two series of thermoplastic polyurethanes (PUs). Isosorbide was used alone or in combination with butanediol to examine the effects on the morphology of PU. Two series of materials were prepared – one with dispersed hard domains in a matrix of polytetramethylene ether glycol soft segments of molecular weight 1400 g mol^?1 (at 70 wt% soft segment concentration, SSC) and the other with co‐continuous soft and hard phases at 50 wt% SSC. We investigated the detailed morphology of these materials with optical and atomic force microscopy, as well as ultra‐small‐angle X‐ray scattering. The atomic force microscopy measurements confirmed the different morphologies in PUs with 50 wt% SSC and with 70 wt% SSC. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering data showed that in PU with 70 wt% SSC, the hard domain size varied between 2.4 and 2.9 nm, and decreased with increasing isosorbide content. In PU with 70 wt% SSC, we found that the correlation length and average repeat distances became smaller with increasing isosorbide content. We estimated the thickness of the diffuse phase boundary for PU with 70 wt% SSC to be ca 0.5 nm, decreasing slightly with increasing isosorbide content. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of air blowing on the morphology and nanofiber properties of blowing‐assisted electrospun polycarbonates

Polycarbonate (PC) nanofibers are prepared using the air blowing‐assisted electrospinning process. The effects of air blowing pressure and PC solution concentration on the physical properties of fibers and the filtration performance of the nanofiber web are investigated. The air blowing‐assisted electrospinning process produces fewer beads and smaller nanofiber diameters compared with those obtained without air blowing. Uniform PC nanofibers with an average fiber diameter of about 0.170 μm are obtained using an applied voltage of 40 kV, an air blowing pressure of 0.3 MPa, a PC solution concentration of 16%, and a tip‐to‐collection‐screen distance (TCD) of 25 cm. The filtration efficiency improvement of the air blowing‐assisted electrospun web can be attributed to the narrow distribution of fiber diameter and small mean flow pore size of the electrospun web. Performance results show that the air blowing‐assisted electrospinning process can be applied to produce PC nanofiber mats with high‐quality filtration. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Synthesis of bio‐based polyurethanes from epoxidized soybean oil and isopropanolamine

Epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) and isopropanolamine were used to synthesize a new polyol mixture for preparation of bio‐based polyurethanes. The chemical synthetic route for reaction of ESO with isopropanolamine was analyzed by ¹H‐NMR. The results suggested that both ester groups and epoxy groups in ESO had reacted with amino group of isopropanolamine through simultaneous ring‐opening and amidation reactions. Epoxy groups in various situations exhibited different reactivity, and the unreacted epoxy groups were further opened by hydrochloric acid. The synthesized polyol mixture had high hydroxyl number of 317.0 mg KOH/g. A series of polyurethanes were prepared by curing the synthesized polyol mixture with 1,6‐diisocyanatohexance along with different amount of 1,3‐propanediol (PDO) as chain extender. Tensile tests showed that yield strengths of the polyurethanes ranged from 2.74 to 27.76 MPa depending on the content of PDO. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis displayed one glass transition temperature in the range of 24.4–28.7°C for all of the polyurethane samples, and one melt peak at high content of PDO. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that thermal degradations of the polyurethanes started at 240–255°C. In consideration of simple preparation process and renewable property of ESO, the bio‐based polyurethane would have wide range of applications. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Phase morphology of functionalized polyester polyurethanes. Effect of functional group concentration

Segmented polyester polyurethanes (PU) were prepared based on polycaprolactone as a soft segment and a hard segment containing isophoronediisocyanate and chain extenders 2,2′‐bis‐(hydroxymethyl) propionic acid and 1,4‐butanediol with different molar ratios. The changes of crystallinity and morphology due to the incorporation of carboxylic functional groups in the hard segment were monitored by wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction, optical microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The concentration of functional groups varied from 0 to 0.45 mmol g⁻¹. The phase separation, the degree of crystallinity and the size of spherulites depend on the interactions imposed by functional groups. A critical level of the concentration of functional groups (0.25 mmol g⁻¹) at which the crystallizability reaches its maximum was observed. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry