Microwave Effect on Curing of Waterborne Polyurethane

Spin-coated waterborne polyurethane to protect glass surface from environmental attacks was cured by using microwave heating. The effect of microwave heating on the reaction kinetics, chemical durability, and transmittance of polyurethane was investigated. In comparison to the conventional heating the results show that the microwave heating substantially accelerates the curing process of waterborne polyurethane and the total time for the completion of the reaction is only 1/7 of that in the conventional process. The microwave cured sample showed an excellent caustic resistance compared to conventional cured one. It means that microwave heating produces dense structure during curing process. The dense structure does not affect to the transmittance in the visible region.