Multifunctional acrylate monomers, dimers and oligomers: Applications from contact lenses to wood‐polymer composites

Abstract

The synthesis of various esters of α‐hydroxymethylacrylate are summarized along with a brief description of their properties and polymerizability. Polymer characterization is given, including thermal behavior, solubility and spectroscopic properties. Derivatives of the acrylates are generated through reaction of the alcohol group to give halides, esters, ethers, and ether dimers. The last, along with additional multifunctional acrylates generated through the chemistry inherent in the synthetic approach, allow formation of a number of cyclopolymers, Michael polyadducts, and crosslinked systems.