The damping properties of polybutyl methacrylate (PBMA)/aromatic petroleum resin (C9) composite were investigated in this work. In particular, a trace of styrene (St) was introduced to copolymerize with PBMA to improve the compatibility between C9 and matrix. The structure of the copolymer, P(BMA-co-St), was characterized by FTIR and 1HNMR. The P(BMA-co-St)/C9 composites were tested by differencial scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and dynamical mechanical analysis (DMA). DSC curves of all P(BMA-co-1wt%St)/C9 composites expressed only one glass transition temperature (Tg). SEM images showed that C9 had good compatibility with the matrix after St was introduced. DMA curves indicated that the addition of C9 had a positive effect on the damping properties of PBMA. The loss tangent (tanδ) peak moved to a higher temperature with the increment content of C9, and the effective damping temperature range increased significantly. The influence of aromatic resin C9 and aliphatic resin (C5) on PBMA damping performance was compared. It was further shown that C9 with benzene ring effectively improved the damping performance of PBMA.
Keywords: aromatic petroleum resin (C9); damping properties; polybutyl methacrylate (PBMA); styrene.