Methacrylated

Methacrylated describes a molecule that contains one or more methacrylate functional groups, or has been modified to bear methacrylate functionality. The methacrylate group is an ester derived from methacrylic acid, typically represented as CH2=C(CH3)COO-R, where R is the rest of the molecule. This vinyl ester confers polymerizable characteristics, enabling crosslinking and network formation through radical, thermal, or photoinitiated processes.

Methacrylation is commonly accomplished by reacting alcohols or amines with methacryloyl chloride or methacrylic anhydride to form methacrylate esters or methacrylamides. Glycidyl methacrylate is another widely used reagent that introduces a methacrylate group via epoxy ring opening. Methacrylated compounds serve as monomers or functionalized intermediates for creating polymers, coatings, and dental materials, as well as crosslinked hydrogels and biomaterials.

In polymer science and materials engineering, methacrylated molecules enable rapid curing and tunable network properties. They are used to produce polymethacrylates and crosslinked systems for coatings, adhesives, 3D printing resins, and dental composites. In biomedicine, proteins, polysaccharides, and other polymers can be methacrylated to enable photo-crosslinking, exemplified by GelMA (gelatin methacrylate) hydrogels used in tissue engineering.

Compared with acrylation, methacrylation introduces an additional methyl substituent on the vinyl group, which generally reduces reactivity and alters polymerization kinetics and network architecture. Safety considerations include irritant and sensitizer potential for methacrylates and their derivatives; proper handling and ventilation are recommended.

See also: methacryloyl, GelMA, MA, polymethacrylates.