Hydrophobic-hydrophilic switchable polymers for use in agriculture

Abstract

A process for regulating the water retention of soil materials used in agriculture involving providing a composition comprising a polymer selected from the group consisting of a urethane, a urethaneurea, a thiocarbamate and mixtures thereof, said polymer comprising hydrophobic and hydrophilic segments; and applying the composition onto soil materials used in agriculture to form a polymer film thereon, wherein the hydrophobic and hydrophilic segments together provide reversible hydrophobic-hydrophilic switching in response to water, such that the film surface switches from a relatively hydrophobic state in dry conditions to a relatively hydrophilic state in response to the presence of water in contact with the film surface.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.