1. Healthcare Sector
Manufacturing contact lenses, dental materials (impressions, dentures, adhesives, etc.), drug delivery hydrogels, artificial tissues (e.g., artificial corneas)
High hydrophilicity, excellent biocompatibility, high oxygen permeability, capable of forming hydrogels

2. Coatings and Adhesives
Used in automotive topcoats/primers, wood/metal coatings, UV-curable coatings, acrylic adhesives
Hydroxyl groups provide crosslinking sites, enhancing adhesion, hardness, chemical resistance, and weatherability

3. Personal Care
Gel nail polish (UV-curable nail polish), hair extension adhesives
Rapid curing, forms tough film layers

4. Research & Industry
Electron microscope embedding agents for biological samples, textile treatment agents, lubricant additives
Excellent permeability for hydrated samples, improves fiber properties

⚕️ Healthcare: Leveraging its biocompatibility
This represents HEMA’s most advanced application, centered on material-human tissue compatibility.

Contact Lenses: High-purity HEMA serves as the core monomer for manufacturing soft contact lenses (hydrogel lenses). Its polymer absorbs significant moisture, maintaining lens flexibility, oxygen permeability, and wearing comfort.

Dental Materials: Widely used in dental restorative resins, temporary crowns, bridges, and adhesives. HEMA’s hydroxyl groups enhance material bonding strength to dental tissues.

Drug Delivery & Tissue Engineering: Hydrogel networks formed by HEMA polymers can encapsulate drugs for controlled release or serve as scaffold materials for tissue repair.

🎨 Coatings and Adhesives: Enhancing Comprehensive Performance

In this field, HEMA primarily functions as a functional monomer to modify resin properties.

Coatings: In automotive and industrial paints, HEMA’s hydroxyl groups react with other functional groups in the resin (e.g., isocyanates) to form dense crosslinked networks, significantly improving paint film durability, gloss, and scratch resistance.

Adhesives: As a component, HEMA improves the bonding strength and flexibility of adhesives across various substrates.