スチレン系熱可塑性エラストマーの医療用途への応用

抄録

Styrenic elastomer (SEBS) is a block polymer made by hydrogenation of styrene-butadiene copolymer (SBS), which is obtained by living anionic polymerization of styrene and butadiene monomers. It is known to exhibit high flexibility, rubber elasticity, and mechanical properties due to the micro-layered structure of the hard segment polystyrene portion and the soft segment butadiene portion. SEBS is used as a modifier to add flexibility and impact strength to various plastics because its physical properties and compatibility with other resins can be finetuned by controlling the amount of styrene and the reactivity of the 1,2 and 1,4 bonds in the butadiene. Especially, SEBS has excellent compatibility with PP, and is widely used in medical applications that require hygienic properties because it provides flexibility and impact resistance without the use of plasticizers. In this report, we describe the application of SEBS to infusion bag films and tubing for IV sets.