Polyurethane-polysiloxane Copolymer Compatibilized SiR/TPU TPV with Comfortable Human Touch Toward Wearable Devices

Because of its softness,wear resistance,biocompatibility,extremely comfortable human touch,thermoplastic vulcanizate(TPV)comprised of silicone rubber(SiR)and thermoplastic polyurethane(TPU)(SiR/TPU TPV)is especially suitable for wearable intelligent devices.Nevertheless,developing good compatibilizer is still required to prepare high performance SiR/TPU TPV.In this study,three kinds of polyurethane-polysiloxane copolymer(PU-co-PSi)with different contents of polysiloxane segment were selected,and their compatibilization effect on SiR/TPU blends was studied using nanomechanical mapping technique of AFM.The results show that using PU-co-PSi with the highest content of polysiloxane segment(PU-co-HPSi),the interface thickness largely increases,and the average size of SiR dispersed phase largely decreases,indicating its good compatibilization effect.By using PU-co-HPSi as compatibilizer,SiR/TPU TPV with a fine SiR dispersed phase and good mechanical performance were successfully prepared.The mechanism on the compatibilization effect of these PU-co-PSi on SiR/TPU TPVs was revealed.