Abstract
Developed in last decade, the shape memory polymers have been gaining widespread attention for new product innovation. They are lightweight, have high strain/shape recovery ability, easy to process and required properties can be tailored for variety of different applications. Polyurethane elastomers (PUs) based on polyether diols and aliphatic diisocyanates can be used as passive isolation bearings in railway applications. In the present study poly(1,4-butane) diols (Terathane) and 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI) have been used in polyurethanes, using glycerin, 1,4-butane diol or 1,6 hexane diol as chain extenders. Effect of varying the concentrations of diisocyanates and structure and amount of chain extenders on polyurethane elastomers has been discussed with reference to mechanical properties. IR and thermal analysis techniques (TGA) were used for characterization. Keywords: polyurethane elastomers, chain extenders, mechanical properties, railway isolation