Microemulsion Radical Polymerization of Alkyl Acrylates

✍ Scribed by Capek, I.; Juraničová, V.; Bartoň, J.; Asua, J. M.; Ito, K.

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 302 KB
• Volume: 43
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0959-8103
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0126(199705)43:1<1::aid-pi751>3.0.co;2-i

✦ Synopsis

The oil/water microemulsion polymerizations of alkyl (methyl (MA), ethyl (EA), butyl (BA), hexyl (HA) and 2-ethylhexyl (EHA)) acrylates initiated by a water-soluble (ammonium peroxodisulphate (APS)) initiator were investigated. The rate of polymerization versus conversion curve shows two inconstant intervals. The maximum rate of polymerization of MA, EA, BA and EHA is found to be proportional to the 0É53, 0É17, 0É46 and 0É59 powers of the APS concentration and to the Ðrst power of the monomer (MA, BA and EHA) concentration. Homogeneous (solution) radical polymerization is operative in the MA, BA and EHA systems. The strong rate dependence on the EA monomer concentration is assumed to be caused by both the polymerization within the micelle core and the gel e †ect. The particle size was observed to increase with conversion in the EA and BA runs and to decrease in the EHA and HA runs. The number of particles increased with conversion during the whole polymerization. The polymer particles grow by recruiting monomer and emulsiÐer from the free monomer-swollen micelles and dead particles.