Microencapsulation of a UV-Responsive Photochromic Dye by Means of Novel UV-Screening Polyurea-Based Shells for Smart Coating Applications

This article describes the synthesis, characterization, and application of new UV-absorbing microcapsules encapsulating a UV-responsive photochromic dye for application in the damage-sensing field. Microcapsules filled with a photochromic spiropyran, dissolved in sunflower oil as core material, were synthesized by reacting a TDI-based polyisocyanate prepolymer with a benzophenone-based amine to obtain robust UV-absorbing polyurea shells. The newly synthesized UV-screening microcapsules were embedded into a photoresist to realize a new mechanoresponsive polymer. After scratching the coating, the UV-screening microcapsules break and the UV-sensitive core material is released and diffuses into the polymer matrix. Upon exposure to UV-A light, a rapid color change in the region where the damage was made is observed, because of the photoinduced transition of spiropyran to the plane merocyanine form. The novelty of the approach presented in this work lies in the possibility to convert any type of conventional polymeric coating into a UV-light-sensitive mechanoresponsive smart coating by simple addition of our new UV-screening microcapsules.