New aspects of viscosity effects on the photopolymerization kinetics of the 2,2‐bis[4‐(2‐hydroxymethacryloxypropoxy)phenyl]propane/triethylene glycol dimethacrylate monomer system

The photopolymerization kinetics and viscosity behavior of 11 2,2‐bis[4‐(2‐hydroxymethacryloxypropoxy)phenyl]propane/triethylene glycol dimethacrylate mixtures were investigated. The viscosity was studied at six temperatures (20–70°C), and the activation energies for the viscosity were determined. The excess logarithm viscosities were calculated and found to be negative over the whole composition and temperature ranges; they were fitted to the Redlish–Kister polynomial equation. The kinetic analysis of the photopolymerization was carried out at three polymerization temperatures (20, 40, and 60°C). The results proved the existence of the most reactive composition (reaching the highest value of the maximum polymerization rate), but the ratio of the monomers in this composition, close to equimolar, showed a tendency to change with the polymerization temperature. The viscosities of the most reactive compositions lay in the range of about 0.1–1.2 Pa s, which was narrow in comparison with the range of viscosities of all the compositions used in the kinetic studies (from 3 × 10−3 to 1.5 × 103 Pa s). The activation energies for the polymerization rates were calculated and correlated with the viscosity changes.