Microencapsulation of diglycidyl 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylate by in situ polymerization: Preparation and characterization

Abstract

Microcapsules containing a glycidyl ester-type epoxy resin were successfully synthesized by in situ polymerization, with poly(melamine-urea-formaldehyde) as the shell material and diglycidyl 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylate (DGCHD) as the core substance. Scanning electron microscopy was performed to investigate the surface morphology and shell wall thickness of the microcapsule. The fabrication, diameters and thermal decomposition behavior of the resultant microcapsules were studied by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, laser particle size analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), respectively. Results indicated that the highest loading of DGCHD in the as-prepared microcapsules was about 89.1 wt.% and that the mean diameter of the capsules was in the range of 50-130 μm, which can be adjusted by changing the feeding mass ratio of the core/shell material and emulsifying rate, respectively. TGA results showed that the microencapsulated DGCHD degraded in two distinguishable stages.