Egg‐Inspired All‐Acrylate Three‐Layer Core–Shell Impact Modifier for Rigid–Elastic Toughening of Transparent Poly(Methyl Methacrylate)

An egg‐inspired all‐acrylate three‐layer core–shell impact modifier ( AIM ), consisting of a poly(trimethylolpropane triacrylate) ( PTMPTA )‐rich core, a crosslinked poly(butyl acrylate) ( PBA )‐rich interlayer, and a poly(methyl methacrylate) ( PMMA )‐rich outer layer, was prepared by sequential seed emulsion polymerization for transparent toughening of PMMA . The selected AIM had a hydrodynamic diameter of ~245 nm. At 20 wt% loading, PMMA / AIM exhibited notched Izod and Charpy impact strengths of 10.30 ± 0.31 and 9.10 ± 0.23 kJ /m 2 , respectively, with the Izod value reaching ~5.7 times that of the PMMA control. Total luminous transmittances of 89.3% and 87.6% and haze values of 4.5% and 5.2% were retained at thicknesses of 1 and 2 mm, respectively. Independent AIM batches showed low between‐batch variation (coefficients of variation, 0.56%–4.44%). Fracture‐surface observations were consistent with enhanced plastic deformation and energy dissipation without directly resolving the complete microscopic fracture sequence. After 72 h of accelerated UV aging, PMMA / AIM exhibited substantially lower yellowness than the styrene‐containing reference. These results demonstrate a reproducible all‐acrylate approach for improving the toughness–transparency balance of PMMA while limiting post‐aging yellowness.