Progress of hyperbranched polymers (HBPs) as modifiers in epoxy resins

Abstract

Hyperbranched polymers (HBPs) are a new kind of polymers used as modifiers of epoxy resins to increase their strength and toughness without affecting the processability. The influence of some HBPs on the physical properties and thermal resistance of epoxy resin was summarized in this paper, including four parts:hyperbranched polyether as an epoxy modifier, hyperbranched polyamide/polyimide/polyethyleneimine as an epoxy modifier, hyperbranched polysiloxanes as an epoxy modifier and other hyperbranched polymers as an epoxy modifier. Then the drawback of hyperbranched polymers used as modifiers of epoxy resins was revealed. In addition, more and more fascinating materials and devices based on hyperbranched polymers will be successfully developed and fabricated in the future. The main limitation of the HBPs in the field of epoxy resin modification is that the synthesis steps of most HBPs are cumbersome. Thus, in the future, with the advent of simpler, greener synthetic methods, HBPs will be more widely used in other emerging fields and modified resins.

Keywords

• hyperbranched polymers (HBPs)
• epoxy resin
• modification
• strength and toughness