A novel method for preparing epoxy-containing microcapsules via UV irradiation-induced interfacial copolymerization in emulsions

A novel method for producing epoxy resin-containing microcapsules via UV-initiated radical copolymerization in an epoxy emulsion was developed. Epoxydiacrylates and a polymerizable emulsifier were employed as the wall-formers, which tended to accumulate at the exterior layer of epoxy colloids during the emulsification process. Upon exposure to UV light, the shell phase consisting of the wall-formers was rapidly cured into solid to generate microcapsules with epoxy as the core substance. In this paper, the characteristics of the resultant microcapsules, including size and size distribution, chemical features, surface morphology, thermal stability, core content, and reactivity with curing agent, were studied. Also, the factors influencing the preparation of microcapsules were analyzed. Moreover, the optimum synthetic conditions of UV irradiation to prepare the microcapsules were determined by orthographic factorial design. Compared to the conventional thermal initiation, the present UV-aided encapsulation saves time.