Vinyl toluene polyester reactive diluent

Because of its low price, compatibility, low viscosity and ease of use styrene is the preferred reactive diluent in general purpose resins. Methyl methacrylate is sometimes used, but as it does not copolymerise alone with most unsaturated polyesters, usually in conjunction with styrene in resins for translucent sheeting. Vinyl toluene and diallyl phthalate are also occasionally employed. The use of many other monomers is described in the literature. 

Reactive diluent is a very important component of unsaturated polyester resins. It should act as a solvent for unsaturated polyester resins as well as copolymerize with unsaturated bonds in the polymer backbone. Styrene is the most commonly used diluent due to good solvency, low cost, low viscosity and good reactivity. Apart from styrene, other monomers such as vinyl toluene, methyl methacrylate and a-methyl styrene as well as some polyfunctional diluents such as 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate, diallyl phthalate, divinyl benzene, and trimethylolpropane triacrylate are used. 

CIO aromatics. Styrene and vinyl toluene are also aromatic hydrocarbons that act simultaneously as solvents and reactive diluents for chemical crosslinking with unsaturated polyester resins and in UV-cured coatings. 

As pointed out in the introduction, unsaturated polyester resins are commonly combined with reactive diluent monomers (Table 12.3). Styrene is most frequently used for this purpose.However, monomers such as methyl methacrylate, diallyl phthalate, " triallyl cyanurate, " vinyl toluene,a -methylstyrene, p-t rt-butylstyrene, and chlorostyrene have also been studied (Table 12.3), showing varying degrees of utility. 

---

See also in sourсe #XX -- [ ]

---