Wiktionary
n. 1 (context organic chemistry English) Any salt or ester of methacrylic acid, especially an ester used in the manufacture of resins and plastics. 2 A resin manufactured from methacrylic acid or a methacrylate.
WordNet
Wikipedia
Methacrylate refers to derivatives of methacrylic acid. These derivatives include the parent acid (CHC(CH)COH), salts (e.g., CHC(CH)CONa), esters (e.g. CHC(CH)COCH, or methyl methacrylate) and the polymers of these species.
Methacrylates are common monomers in polymer plastics, forming the acrylate polymers. Methacrylates easily form polymers because the double bonds are very reactive. They are used as the monomer resin in some windscreen repair kits, and as bone cement for fixing prosthetic devices in orthopaedic surgery.
The term (meth)acrylate is frequently used as a generic for acrylate and methacrylate.
Hydroxyethylmethacrylate or HEMA is the monomer that is used to make the polymer polyhydroxyethylmethacrylate. The polymer is hydrophobic; however, when the polymer is subjected to water it will swell due to the molecule's hydrophilic pendant group. Depending on the physical and chemical structure of the polymer, it is capable of absorbing from 10 to 600% water relative to the dry weight. Because of this property, it was one of the first materials to be successfully used in the manufacture of flexible contact lenses
Usage examples of "methacrylate".
The aluminum behind that reflected it again, and this time it lost itself in the absorbing surface of some methacrylate plastic, which swelled and exploded gently into shards of gooey stuff.