Influence of Functional Additives with Potential Antimicrobial Properties on the Mechanical Performance and Accelerated Aging Resistance of (Meth)Acrylate-Based Composites.

The main aim of this study was to prepare and evaluate the physicochemical properties of new composite materials based on bisphenol A dimethacrylate modified with selected comonomers, namely 2-ethylhexyl acrylate (AEH), methyl methacrylate (MMA), 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), and N-vinylpyrrolidone (NVP), and additives with potential antimicrobial properties, including nanosilver (Ag), copper(II) sulfate (CuSO4), benzethonium chloride (BEN), zinc oxide (ZnO), and zinc methacrylate (metZnO). The resulting composites were evaluated for their mechanical, structural, and ageing-related properties. The results demonstrated that the type of comonomer significantly influenced material performance. The lowest swelling coefficients were observed in composites containing AEH, whereas the highest values were observed in NVP-based materials. All investigated composites exhibited high hardness values. Accelerated ageing resulted in a reduction in hardness for all materials. Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) revealed that the highest glass transition temperatures were obtained for materials containing NVP and HEMA, particularly those modified with metZnO. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed that the chemical structure of the composites remained unchanged after accelerated ageing. Furthermore, colour changes were observed after ageing, with the most pronounced effects found for composites containing CuSO4 and BEN. The obtained results confirm that the appropriate selection of a comonomer and a modifying additive effectively enhances the beneficial properties of composite materials with special features.