The present invention relates to thermally conductive materials, including, for instance, thermally conductive tubing and thermally conductive apparel, and applications thereof. In particular, the invention relates to thermally conductive tubing that can used in thermoregulatory apparel, such as, for example, cooling garments and cooling vests. In at least one embodiment, the present invention includes a thermally conductive material made from one or more base polymers and one or more additives that increase the thermal conductivity of the thermally conductive material relative to the one or more base polymers. The base polymer may include, for example, ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), and the additive may include, for example, graphite fibers. The thermally conductive material may also include, for instance, a secondary polymer, such as ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) and/or a plasticizer, such as bis(2-ethylhexyl) adipate (DEHA). Thermally conductive material produced according to one or more embodiments of the present invention may also be extruded or formed to create thermally conductive tubing and/or sheets.

The present invention relates to thermally conductive materials, including, for instance, thermally conductive tubing and thermally conductive apparel, and applications thereof. In particular, the invention relates to thermally conductive tubing that can used in thermoregulatory apparel, such as, for example, cooling garments and cooling vests. In at least one embodiment, the present invention includes a thermally conductive material made from one or more base polymers and one or more additives that increase the thermal conductivity of the thermally conductive material relative to the one or more base polymers. The base polymer may include, for example, ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), and the additive may include, for example, graphite fibers. The thermally conductive material may also include, for instance, a secondary polymer, such as ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) and/or a plasticizer, such as bis(2-ethylhexyl) adipate (DEHA). Thermally conductive material produced according to one or more embodiments of the present invention may also be extruded or formed to create thermally conductive tubing and/or sheets.

Provided is a rubber composition that achieves a balanced improvement in fuel economy, abrasion resistance, and wet grip performance while having good processability. Also provided is a pneumatic tire including a tread formed from the rubber composition. The present invention relates to a rubber composition containing: a rubber component including a copolymer; and carbon black and/or silica, the copolymer containing a structural unit derived from a conjugated diene monomer and a structural unit derived from a compound represented by the following formula (1):

##STR00001##

wherein R.sup.11 represents a C1-C30 hydrocarbon group.

Provided is a rubber composition that achieves a balanced improvement in fuel economy, abrasion resistance, and wet grip performance while having good processability. Also provided is a pneumatic tire including a tread formed from the rubber composition. The present invention relates to a rubber composition containing: a rubber component including a copolymer; and carbon black and/or silica, the copolymer containing a structural unit derived from a conjugated diene monomer and a structural unit derived from a compound represented by the following formula (1):

##STR00001##

wherein R.sup.11 represents a C1-C30 hydrocarbon group.

Resin compositions, layers, and interlayers comprising two or more thermoplastic polymers and at least one RI balancing agent for adjusting the refractive index of at least one of the resins or layers is provided. Such compositions, layers, and interlayers exhibit enhanced optical properties while retaining other properties, such as impact resistance and acoustic performance.

The object of the present disclosure is to provide a method for producing a crosslinked polymer by radical polymerization of a monomer composition, by which method a desired crosslinked polymer can be produced in a high solid content with good productivity (also at a low production cost), and a crosslinked polymer obtained by the production method and a coating composition containing the same. A method for producing a crosslinked polymer having a weight average molecular weight of 15000 to 200000, the method comprising step [I] of obtaining a crosslinked polymer (A) by conducting polymerization of a monomer composition comprising 2 to 30% by weight of a polyfunctional methacrylate having 2 to 4 functional groups (a) and 98 to 70% by weight of one or more polymerizable monomers selected from the group consisting of monofunctional (meth)acrylates, (meth)acrylic acid, and monofunctional vinyl aromatic compounds (b) in an organic solvent in the presence of a radical polymerization initiator in a temperature region where the radical polymerization initiator comes to have a half-life of 4 to 18 minutes.

The object of the present disclosure is to provide a method for producing a crosslinked polymer by radical polymerization of a monomer composition, by which method a desired crosslinked polymer can be produced in a high solid content with good productivity (also at a low production cost), and a crosslinked polymer obtained by the production method and a coating composition containing the same. A method for producing a crosslinked polymer having a weight average molecular weight of 15000 to 200000, the method comprising step [I] of obtaining a crosslinked polymer (A) by conducting polymerization of a monomer composition comprising 2 to 30% by weight of a polyfunctional methacrylate having 2 to 4 functional groups (a) and 98 to 70% by weight of one or more polymerizable monomers selected from the group consisting of monofunctional (meth)acrylates, (meth)acrylic acid, and monofunctional vinyl aromatic compounds (b) in an organic solvent in the presence of a radical polymerization initiator in a temperature region where the radical polymerization initiator comes to have a half-life of 4 to 18 minutes.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method comprising obtaining a mixture comprising at least one vinyl polymer, at least one organic acid, and at least one hydronium ion donor. In some embodiments, the method comprises reacting an —OH group of the B polymer chain segment with the at least one organic acid in the presence of the at least one hydronium ion donor, so as to form at least one polyvinyl ester. Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a roofing material comprising at least one reinforcement material and at least one polyvinyl ester.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method comprising obtaining a mixture comprising at least one vinyl polymer, at least one organic acid, and at least one hydronium ion donor. In some embodiments, the method comprises reacting an —OH group of the B polymer chain segment with the at least one organic acid in the presence of the at least one hydronium ion donor, so as to form at least one polyvinyl ester. Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a roofing material comprising at least one reinforcement material and at least one polyvinyl ester.

A method of reducing gloss that results in a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) component that exhibits a reduced level of surface gloss; wherein, the PVC or other thermoplastic resin component comprises: a PVC resin; one or more process aids comprising at least one base polymer with one or more of the process aids being functionalized with about 0.5 wt. % to about 35 wt. % of a reactive epoxy, hydroxyl, or carboxylic acid functional group based on the total weight of the process aids; and optionally, at least one impact modifier. The PVC or other thermoplastic resin component exhibits a gloss reduction of at least 5 points measured at an angle of 85 degrees or less when compared to a similar PVC component in which the process aids are not functionalized.