Sorptive dilation of polysulfone and poly(ethylene terephthalate) films by high-pressure carbon dioxide

Dilation of polysulfone (PSUL) and crystalline poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) films accompanying sorption of carbon dioxide is measured by a cathetometer under high pressure up to 50 atm over the temperature range of 35–65°C. Sorptive dilation isotherms of PSUL are concave and convex to the pressure and concentration axes, respectively, and both isotherms exhibit hysteresis. Each dilation isotherm plotted versus pressure and concentration for the CO₂-PET system shows an inflection point, i.e., a glass transition point, at which the isotherm changes from a nonlinear curve to a straight line. Dilation isotherms of PET below the glass transition point are similar to those of the CO₂-PSUL system, whereas the isotherms above the glass transition point are linear and exhibit no hysteresis. Partial molar volumes of CO₂ in these polymers are determined from data of sorptive dilation. On the basis of the extended dual-mode sorption model and the current data, primitive equations for gas-sorptive dilation of glassy polymers are proposed.     

Dilation and plasticization of polystyrene by carbon dioxide

We have used an optical interference technique to measure the dilation of polystyrene films in the presence of carbon dioxide or helium at pressures up to 20 atm. Dilation isotherms (plots of dilation versus gas pressure at constant temperature) were obtained for three samples of polystyrene which had widely differing molecular weights. The dilation isotherms have the same general shape as sorption isotherms, which means that all of the sorbed gas molecules contribute to volume dilation and non can be thought of as occupying molecular-sized voids in the polymer. Using sorption results from the literature we show that the partial molar volume of CO₂ at 35°C is about 39 cm³ mol^?1 and appears to be independent of polystyrene molecular weight. For a polystyrene sample with M_n = 3600, the partial molar volume of sorbed CO₂ increases to 44 and 50 cm³ mol^?1 at 45 and 55°C, respectively. The sorption of CO₂ in polystyrene is shown to depress the glass transition temperature of the mixture, consistent with theoretical predictions. The shape of the dilation and sorption isotherms are consistent with the depression of the glass transition temperature.     

Effect of penetrant-induced isothermal glass transition on sorption,dilation, and diffusion behavior of polybenzylmethacrylate/CO2

The effect of a penetrant-induced isothermal glass transition on sorption, dilation, and diffusion behavior was studied in a single experimental run for CO₂ in cast polybenzylmethacrylate films. The dual-mode type sorption isotherms below the glass transition temperature of the polymer changed to linear ones above a certain concentration. Meanwhile, partial molar volume of CO₂ determined from the dilation of the films above the concentration gave a value very close to the one reported for rubbery polymers, and diffusion coefficients became less concentration-dependent. The results were conformable to the concept of unrelaxed volume in glassy polymers. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Dilation kinetics of glassy,aromatic polyimides induced by carbon dioxide sorption

Over the past years, the equilibrium sorption of gases in polymers has been intensively studied. Mostly, glassy polymers were investigated because of their excellent selective mass transport properties. This work does not focus on the equilibrium sorption but on the kinetics to reach the equilibrium. We developed a new experimental method measuring the sorption-induced dilation kinetics of a polymer film. Carbon dioxide and glassy, aromatic polyimides were chosen as model systems. Low-pressure experiments demonstrate that the measured dilation kinetics represent the sorption kinetics. A significant delay between the sorption and dilation kinetics is based on the fact that dilation kinetics occurs simultaneously with the concentration increase in the center of the polymer film. High-pressure experiments reveal significant differences in dilation kinetics compared to low-pressure experiments. Generally, three regimes can be distinguished in the dilation kinetics: a first, fast volume increase followed by two much slower regimes of volume increase. The magnitude of fast and slow dilation kinetics strongly depends on the swelling history of the polymer sample. The results of the experiments are analyzed in the light of a model relating the fast dilation kinetics to a reversible “Fickian” dilation and the slower dilation kinetics to an irreversible, relaxational dilation. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Refractive index measurements of films with biaxial symmetry. 2. Determination of film thickness and refractive indices using polarized transmission spectra in the transparent wavelength range

A technique is formulated to determine both thickness and refractive indices of free-standing films with biaxial symmetry from polarized transmission spectra. The films must be transparent and show little dispersion in refractive indices in the wavelength range where the transmission spectra are collected. Methods are proposed to correct the errors caused by imperfect polarization of incident radiation and thickness variation across the sampling area. Anisotropic refractive indices and thickness of poly(biphenyl dianhydride-p-phenylenediamine) films which exhibit uniaxial optical anisotropy are determined from polarized transmission spectra. The refractive index and thickness values compare well to those obtained from waveguide prism coupler and profilometer measurements.     

Analysis of the kinetics of vapor absorption/desorption in/from silicone rubber and cellulose acetate membranes in the presence of stagnant boundary layers

The application of an interferometric technique (optical thickness meter, OTM) to the measurement of vapor sorption kinetics in both rubbery and glassy polymers is presented. In this technique, the membrane is formed by casting on a suitable glass surface and interferometry is applied in situ. The use of a carrier gas loaded with penetrant vapor introduced a stagnant boundary layer (SBL) effect which had to be corrected, in order to determine true sorption kinetics. The said SBL effect was estimated, on the basis of existing theory for the silicone rubber–methylene chloride (SR/MC) system and found to be more pronounced in the case of desorption. Upon correction for this effect, Fickian sorption curves were obtained; which yielded nearly constant values of the diffusion coefficient, not materially different for absorption and desorption, in line with theoretical expectation.Cellulose acetate–methylene chloride (CA/MC) was then studied as an example of a glassy polymer–vapor system, where the SBL effect distorts the absorption kinetic curve in the same way as the non-Fickian mechanism of sorption inherent in this kind of polymer–penetrant system. Here, the vapor sorption data were corrected using the results obtained from the Fickian SR/MC system. The corrected results were checked by comparison with independent data reflecting the true kinetic behavior of CA/MC, obtained with a vacuum balance apparatus (VBA), which is free of SBL effects. It is shown that this novel method of applying the SBL correction was reasonably successful in favorable circumstances, while a criterion is provided to identify cases where reasonably reliable correction is not possible.     

Flow microcalorimetry and competitive liquid sorption II. Liquid sorption and wetting on macroreticular hydrophilic/hydrophobic networks

Three different types of polymer networks (polymer resins) were investigated by flow microcalorimetry and selective liquid sorption from 1-propanol(1)-water(2) mixtures. Type 1 network structure is formed by non-polar, non-swelling, macroporous resins (Amberlite XAD-2, Amberlite XAD-4). The composite isotherms for alcohol sorption were S-shaped. 1-Propanol is preferentially sorbed up to x₁≈0.5. Macroreticular non-ionic resins, Amberlite XAD-7 and XAD-8, represent the second type of polymer structure. These particles have a considerable extent of swelling in the binary liquid mixture and 1-propanol was preferentially sorbed by the polymer. The composite isotherms were U-shaped and exhibit maxima and minima. The third type of network structure is attached to macroreticular polar, hydrophilic ion-exchange resins (Chelite-S, Amberlyste A-21). Depending on the composition range of the binary liquid mixture, the resins may swell to a different extent and water is preferentially embeded in the porous polymer network. The swelling of the polymer networks was monitored by the gravimetric technique in separate experiments. The sorption capacity determined from the liquid uptake of the resins was related to the sorption capacity derived from the reduced surface excess. The enthalpy effect accompanying the sorption process was determined by flow and immersion microcalorimetry. The enthalpy of displacement isotherms reveals differences in polarity and swelling ability of the polymer network fairly well. Structural changes in the adsorption layers and formation of alcohol-water clusters on the surfaces play an important role.     

Quick pH-responsive Films Prepared from Urethane Acrylate Anionomers Under UV Radiation and Their Responsive Performances

Urethane acrylate anionomers(UAA) were prepared in various compositions by three steps. Under UV radiation, UAA formed pH-sensitive films with drying film thicknesses of 60,200 and 330 ttm. The equilibrium swelling ratios(SR) of the films in various pH buffer solutions increased with the increase of the molecule weight of UAA. The influence of the film thicknesses on the swelling performances of the films was investigated. The film with a thickness of 60μm could reach the equilibrium state in 2.5--3.5 min. A high SR was obtained for a thick film due to its low average network density. The cured film could swell reversibly and rapidly with the change of pH, which is important for a controlled release system.     

On the calculation of disjoining pressure isotherms for nonaqueous films

A review of the methods of London and Hamaker and of Lifshitz for calculating disjoining pressure isotherms of nonaqueous liquid films is presented. The disjoining pressure isotherms for films of n-octane and of three triglycerides (tributyrin, tricaprylin, and triolein) on glass were calculated using both methods. The disjoining pressure isotherms for films on silanized glass were calculated using only the London-Hamaker approach. The refractive indices and static dielectric constants, necessary for the calculations, were measured. The silanized glass was considered to be the original glass covered by a layer with the same characteristic frequency as the underlying glass and a smaller limiting value of the dielectric constant epsilon(0). The limiting dielectric constant epsilon(0) and the thickness of the surface layer were taken as adjustable parameters. The disjoining pressure isotherms indicate that all films are stable on glass. In contrast, the stability of the films formed on silanized glass was found to depend mainly on the value of epsilon(0) and, less strongly, on the thickness of the surface layer. The stability of the films decreased with the decrease of epsilon(0) and, for each value of epsilon(0), was maximal for the thinnest surface layer.     

Contribution of polymeric swelling to the overall response of capacitive gas sensors

A new method for investigation of the swelling of polymers on exposure to gas or vapour has been devised and tested. It uses an optical profilometer (based on the chromatic aberration of a lens system) which is integrated into a computer-controlled gas-dosing and mixing setup. Gas and/or vapour concentration-dependent measurements have been carried out for thick layers of the polymers commonly used in gravimetric and capacitive gas sensors: poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP), poly(ether urethane) (PEUT), and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The thickness of PAA, PVP, and PEUT films changed significantly on exposure to humidity. These data have been used to derive the sorption isotherms of the respective polymers, which were found to be Henry or Flory–Huggins isotherms. Comparison of the geometrical (swelling) responses with capacitive responses revealed a strong correlation. The correlation, which occurs because both types of response are proportional to the water content of the polymer, is also valid for polymers with nonlinear gas responses. Finally the geometrical and electrical characteristics of the capacitive samples were used to explain the dependence of the capacitive response of different polymers on the concentration of the target gas or vapour. In this way was deduced that PDMS, which does not swell on exposure to humidity, swells in the presence of 2,3-dimethylpentane, for which no profilometer evaluations are yet available.     

Peculiar swelling properties of PVC films grafted with acrylic and methacrylic acids

It was found that PVC films grafted with methacrylic acid do not swell in either water or methanol, two solvents of poly(methacrylic acid), even for high grafting ratios. The swelling of these films was examined in mixtures of methylene chloride with methanol and curves of different shapes were obtained depending on the grafting ratio. PVC films grafted with acrylic acid readily swell in both water and methanol but they remain hard in the swollen state. The equilibrium swelling increases with swelling temperature but this process is not reversible; films swollen at high temperature keep a high degree of swelling even when the system is cooled.     

Dilation of polyethylene by sorption of carbon dioxide

The dilation of low-density polyethylene accompanied by the sorption of CO₂ was measured by microscopy under pressures up to 50 atm at temperatures from 25 to 55°C. The dilatometry measurement, which is also applied to the determination of the thermal expansion coefficient, is directly performed by a cathetometer. The dilation of LDPE by sorbed CO₂ is linear with concentration. The buoyancy correction is described for the CO₂ sorption isotherms in LDPE. The partial molar volume of CO₂ in LDPE, calculated from the dilation and the sorption isotherms, is almost independent of temperature.     

Sorption and dilation in poly(ethyl methacrylate)–carbon dioxide system

Sorption and dilation in the system poly(ethyl methacrylate) (PEMA) and carbon dioxide are reported for pressures up to 50 atm over the temperature range 15–85°C. The sorption isotherms were obtained gravimetrically. The dilation accompanying sorption was measured directly with a cathetometer. At low temperatures the sorption and dilation isotherms were concave toward the pressure axis in the low-pressure region and turned to convex with increasing pressure. As the experimental temperature approached and exceeded the glass transition temperature of 61°C, both isotherms became convex or linear over the whole range of pressure. Partial molar volumes of CO₂ in PEMA were obtained from sorption and dilation data, which were described well by the extended dual-mode sorption and dilation models developed recently. The temperature dependence of the dual-mode parameters and the isothermal glass transition are discussed.     

Chain orientation and anisotropies in optical and dielectric properties in thin films of stiff polyimides

Thin films of poly(p-phenylene biphenyltetracarboximide) (BPDA-PDA), prepared by thermal imidization of the precursor poly(amic acid) on substrates, have been investigated by optical waveguide, ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS), infrared (IR), and dielectric spectroscopies. The polyimide films exhibit an extraordinarily large anisotropy in the refractive indices with the in-plane index n_∥ = 1.806 and the out-of-plane index n_⊥ = 1.589 at 1064 nm wavelength. No discernible effect of the film thickness on this optical anisotropy is found between films of ca. 2.1 and ca. 7.8 μm thickness. This large birefringence is attributed to the preferential orientation of the biphenyltetracarboximide moieties with their planes parallel to the film surface, coupled with the strong preference of BPDA-PDA chains to align along the film plane. The frequency dispersion of the in-plane refractive index n_∥ is consistent with the results calculated by the Lorentz–Lorenz equation from the UV-visible spectrum exhibiting several absorption bands in the 170–500 nm region. The contribution from the IR absorption in the range 7000–400 cm,^?1 computed by the Spitzer-Kleinmann dispersion relations from the measured spectra, adds ca. 0.046 to the in-plane refractive index n_∥. Tilt-angle–dependent polarized IR results indicate nearly the same increase for the out-of-plane index n_⊥. Application of the Maxwell relation then leads to the out-of-plane dielectric constant ε^⊥ ? 2.7 at 1.2 × 10¹³ Hz, as compared with the measured value of ca. 3.0 at 10⁶ Hz. Assuming this small difference to remain the same for the in-plane dielectric constants ε_∥, we obtain a very large anisotropy in the dielectric properties of these polyimide films with the estimated in-plane dielectric constant ε_∥ ? 3.4 at 1.2 × 10¹³ Hz, and ε_∥ ? 3.7 at 10⁶ Hz. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Dilation of polycarbonate by carbon dioxide

A new technique is described for dilatometry under high pressure. The technique is based on optical interferometry and is analogous to measuring the thickness of thin, nonabsorbing films and coatings. The procedure is demonstrated for the well-characterized system of n-pentane sorption by polyisobutylene, and then results for the dilation of polycarbonate by the sorption of carbon dioxide are presented. The dilation of polycarbonate by CO₂ is nearly linear with concentration; the partial molar volume of CO₂ decreases slightly with increasing pressure. This result indicates that all sorbed CO₂ molecules contribute equally to the dilation of the polymer matrix and that none reside in microvoids or in preexisting free-volume elements which do not contribute to volume expansion of the polymer.     

Influence of RAFT end‐groups on the water swelling of poly(N‐propyl methacrylate)

The immersion of poly(n‐propyl methacrylate), PPMA, films (ca., 425 nm) in water induces swelling that is measured in‐situ using spectroscopic ellipsometry. Unexpectedly, the end group of the PPMA resulting from the reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization impacts the temperature dependence of swelling, despite their relatively high molecular weights (ca., 30 kDa). At 25 °C, dithiobenzoate terminated PPMA (PPMA‐DB) leads to significantly less swelling (5.6 vol %) than the dodecylsulfanylthiocarbonyl terminated PPMA (PPMA‐DD, 9.0 vol %). These PPMA films swell significantly more than expected due to a common carboxylic acid end group. As temperature is increased, the swelling for PPMA‐DB increases and that for PPMA‐DD decreases, with a crossover at approximately 35 °C–40 °C where the swelling is indistinguishable between the two polymers. The swelling kinetics exhibit two stages: an initial rapid swelling within the first minute of immersion and then a slow increase in thickness over multiple hours. The water contact angle of PPMA‐DB increases on heating, while the water contact angle of PPMA‐DD is invariant. This difference in the temperature dependence of the hydrophobicity is consistent with that for swelling. These results illustrate the potential unexpected consequences of residual RAFT fragment end groups on physical properties of polymers even at relatively high molecular weights. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 77–84     

Greffage de l'acide methacrylique sur des films de poly(chlorure de vinyle) par la methode radiochimique directe

Since PVC films do not swell in pure methacrylic acid (MAA) the films were subjected to gamma-rays while dipped in various mixtures MAACHCl₂. Under such conditions, the grafting proceeds smoothly and its rate exhibits a flat maximum for the mixture containing ca. 50% (molar) monomer. The rate satisfies the relationship Rate = KI^0.6 and the over-all activation energy of the process is 4 kcal/mole. MAA grafted PVC films do not swell in solvents for PMAA (such as water or methanol) even for high grafting ratios. This result is unexpected since PTFE films grafted with either acrylic or methacrylic acid swell to a large extent in water and are excellent membranes. The swelling of the grafted PVC films was investigated in mixtures 1,2-dichloroethylene -methanol. It was found that the extent of swelling was highest in the mixture containing 35% methanol. The unusual swelling properties of these grafted films are attributed to strong polar interactions between PVC and PMAA chains.     

Sorption and partial molar volumes of gases in poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate)

Sorption and dilation properties of polymer-gas systems involving poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) and N₂, CH₄, or CO₂, have been investigated at pressures up to 50 atm at temperatures of 10–40°C. Sorption isotherms for low-solubility gases (i.e., CH₄ and N₂) can be described by Henry's law, and those for high-solubility gas (i.e., CO₂) by Flory-Huggins dissolution equation. Dilation isotherms are similar in contour to the corresponding sorption isotherms. From the obtained sorption and dilation data, partial molar volumes of the gases in the polymer were determined as a function of temperature. Thermal expansivity of dissolved CO₂ molecules was estimated at ca. 2.4 × 10^?3°C^?1 from the temperature dependence of partial molar volume. The expansivity is smaller than that of liquid CO₂ and larger than those of the polymer and organic liquids. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Moisture sorption, transport, and hydrolytic degradation in polylactide

Management of moisture penetration and hydrolytic degradation of polylactide (PLA) is extremely important during the manufacturing, shipping, storage, and end-use of PLA products. Moisture transport, crystallization, and degradation, in PLA have been measured through a variety of experimental techniques including size-exclusion chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray diffraction. Quartz crystal microbalance and dynamic vapor sorption experiments have also been used to measure moisture sorption isotherms in PLA films with varying crystallinity. A surprising result is that, within the accuracy of the experiments, crystalline and amorphous PLA films exhibit identical sorption isotherms.     

SORPTION OF PHENOL ONTO GEL-TYPE CROSSLINKED POLYSTYRENEISOCYANURIC ACID RESIN

I INTRODUCTIONIn our previous work, three series of macroporous hydrogen-bonding adsorbents have beenstudied, which were adsorbents with hydrogen donator, adsorbents with hydrogen acceptor, andadsorbents with both hydrogen donator and acceptor if-31. If a gel-type resin with hydrogendonator and/or acceptor contacts with a compound with hydrogen acceptor and/Or donatof, canthe gel-type resin sorb the compound based on of hydrogen bonding? Here we report the sorptionof phenol onto gel-type …