Cracking and healing in poly(methyl methacrylate): effect of solvent

In this work, the solvent-induced structural changes of PMMA (poly(methyl methacrylate)) are studied via desorpon of methanol in 2-ethylhexyl alcohol. The desorption of methanol from PMMA specimens causes the shrinking (mass loss) and cracking of the PMMA specimens. The crack density of the cracks induced by the methanol desorption increases with the increase of the immersion time and temperature and approaches plateau. The absorption-induced crack healing of the cracked PMMA specimens is observed via absorption of methanol, resulting in the increase in tensile strength. The cracked PMMA specimens immersed in methanol at higher temperatures have higher tensile strength than at lower temperatures due to the healing of more cracks. The possibility of introducing functional particles, such as quantum dots, into PMMA through absorption-induced migration of particles has been demonstrated via the absorption-induced embedment of carbon particles in the cracked PMMA.