Abstract
By using the technology of the sequential interpenetrating polymer network, a series of novel damping materials based on a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/polyacrylate (PAC) matrix with polymethacrylate (PMAC) were synthesized. They have a controllable broad transition peak spanning the temperature range of 150–220°C and the medial value of loss factor with maximum of 0.35–0.60. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were applied to analyze and characterize the transition behavior and the microphase structure of the materials. It was found that the size and height of a transition peak at both the low‐ and the high‐temperature zones change as a function not only of the concentration of PMAC and PDMS but also of the kind of PMAC; simultaneously, the low‐ temperature behavior was also governed by the crystallization of PDMS. The content of the crosslinking agent exerts a significant influence on the configuration of the curves of the transition peaks. AFM shows a characteristic phase morphology of double‐phase continuity containing a transition layer and domain less than 1 μm, indicating that the interwoven multilayer networks are the key to incorporation of the immiscible components and form a broad damping functional region. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 85: 545–551, 2002