Phase behavior and modeling of the poly(methyl methacrylate)–CO2–methyl methacrylate system

Cloud-point data for the system poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)–CO₂–methyl methacrylate (MMA) are measured in the temperature range of 26 to 170°C, to pressures as high as 2500 bar, and with cosolvent concentrations of 10.4, 28.9, and 48.4 wt.%. PMMA does not dissolve in pure CO₂ to 255°C and 2550 bar. The cloud-point curve for the PMMA–CO₂–10.4 wt.% MMA system exhibits a negative slope that reaches 2500 bar at 105°C. With 28.9 wt.% MMA the cloud-point curve remains relatively flat at ∼900 bar for temperatures between 25 and 170°C. With 48.4 wt.% MMA the cloud-point curve exhibits a positive slope that extends to 20°C and ∼100 bar. Pressure-composition isotherms are also reported for the CO₂–MMA system at 40.0, 80.0, 105.5°C. This system exhibits type-I phase behavior with a continuous mixture–critical curve. The Peng–Robinson (PR) and SAFT equations of state model the CO₂–MMA data reasonably well without any binary interaction parameters, although the PR equation provides a better representation of the mixture-critical region. It is not possible to obtain even a qualitative fit of the PMMA–MMA–CO₂ data with the SAFT equation of state. The SAFT model qualitatively shows that the cloud-point pressure decreases with increasing MMA concentration and that the cloud-point curve exhibits a positive slope for very high concentrations of MMA in solution.     

Preparation and characterization of blended solid polymer electrolyte 49% poly(methyl methacrylate)-grafted natural rubber:poly(methyl methacrylate)–lithium tetrafluoroborate

The preparation and characterization of blended solid polymer electrolyte 49% poly(methyl methacrylate)-grafted natural rubber (MG49):poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) (30:70) were carried out. The effect of lithium tetrafluoroborate (LiBF₄) concentration on the chemical interaction, structure, morphology, and room temperature conductivity of the electrolyte were investigated. The electrolyte samples with various weight percentages (wt.%) of LiBF₄ salt were prepared by solution casting technique and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Infrared analysis demonstrated that the interaction between lithium ions and oxygen atoms occurred at symmetrical stretching of carbonyl (C=O) (1,735 cm^?1) and asymmetric deformation of (O–CH₃) (1,456 cm^?1) via the formation of coordinate bond on MMA structure in MG49 and PMMA. The reduction of MMA peaks intensity at the diffraction angle, 2θ of 29.5° and 39.5° was due to the increase in weight percent of LiBF₄. The complexation occurred between the salt and polymer host had been confirmed by the XRD analysis. The semi-crystalline phase of polymer host was found to reduce with the increase in salt content and confirmed by XRD analysis. Morphological studies by SEM showed that MG49 blended with PMMA was compatible. The addition of salt into the blend has changed the topological order of the polymer host from dark surface to brighter surface. The SEM analyses supported the enhancement of conductivity with the addition of salt. The conductivity increased drastically from 2.0 to 3.4?×?10^?5 S cm^?1 with the addition of 25 wt.% of salt. The increase in the conductivity was due to the increasing of the number of charge carriers in the electrolyte. The conductivity obeys Arrhenius equation in higher temperature region from 333 to 373 K with the pre-exponential factor σ _o of 1.21?×?10^?7 S cm^?1 and the activation energy E _a of 0.46 eV. The conductivity is not Arrhenian in lower temperature region from 303 to 323 K.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(methyl methacrylate‐co‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)‐b‐polyisobutylene‐b‐poly(methyl methacrylate‐co‐hydroxyethyl Methacrylate) Triblock Copolymers

The synthesis of poly[(methyl methacrylate‐co‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)‐b‐isobutylene‐b‐(methyl methacrylate‐co‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)] P(MMA‐co‐HEMA)‐b‐PIB‐b‐P(MMA‐co‐HEMA) triblock copolymers with different HEMA/MMA ratios has been accomplished by the combination of living cationic and anionic polymerizations. P(MMA‐co‐HEMA)‐b‐PIB‐b‐P(MMA‐co‐HEMA) triblock copolymers with different compositions were prepared by a synthetic methodology involving the transformation from living cationic to anionic polymerization. First, 1,1‐diphenylethylene end‐functionalized PIB (DPE‐PIB‐DPE) was prepared by the reaction of living difunctional PIB and 1,4‐bis(1‐phenylethenyl)benzene (PDDPE), followed by the methylation of the resulting diphenyl carbenium ion with dimethylzinc (Zn(CH₃)₂). The DPE ends were quantitatively metalated with n‐butyllithium in tetrahydrofuran, and the resulting macroanion initiated the polymerization of methacrylates yielding triblock copolymers with high blocking efficiency. Microphase separation of the thus prepared triblock copolymers was evidenced by the two glass transitions at ?64 and +120°C observed by differential scanning calorimetry. These new block copolymers exhibit typical stress‐strain behavior of thermoplastic elastomers. Surface characterization of the samples was accomplished by angle‐resolved X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which revealed that the surface is richer in PIB compared to the bulk. However, a substantial amount of P(MMA‐co‐HEMA) remains at the surface. The presence of hydroxyl functionality at the surface provides an opportunity for further modification.     

Molecular simulation of an amorphous poly(methyl methacrylate)–poly(tetrafluoroethylene) interface

Molecular dynamics calculations of an amorphous interfacial system of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) containing about 10,000 interaction sites were performed for 15 ns under constant pressure and constant temperature conditions. The time evolutions of the thickness, density and number of atomic pairs in the interfaces suggested that the interfaces reached their equilibrium states with an interfacial thickness of about 2 nm at 500 K. The molecular motion in the interface and bulk was compared using mean square displacement and torsional autocorrelation function. The separation at a PMMA/PTFE interface was mimicked using non-equilibrium molecular dynamics calculations by applying the potential energy to the MD cell in a direction perpendicular to the interface. Initially, the PTFE layer close to the interface was deformed, and before complete separation, some segments of the PTFE molecules extended from the bulk to the surface of the PMMA layer, which were attached by the intermolecular interaction. The remaining PTFE molecules were entangled in the bulk, which probably prevented the transfer of the PTFE molecules to the surfaces of the PMMA layers. On the other hand, the PMMA layer was only slightly deformed. This separation behavior can be explained by taking into account the intermolecular interaction, the barrier to the conformational changes of the backbones and the entanglement of the PTFE molecules in the bulk.     

Thermal degradation of bromine-containing polymers: Part 11—Blends of poly(2,3-dibromopropyl methacrylate) and poly(2,3-dibromopropyl acrylate) with poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(methyl acrylate)

The products of degradation of blends of poly(2,3-dibromopropyl methacrylate) and poly(2,3-dibromopropyl acrylate) with poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(methyl acrylate) are predominantly those to be expected from the degradation of the individual polymers. However, the appearance of methyl bromide and methanol from all four blends indicates that some interaction does occur across the phase boundary between the two constituent polymers. This is presumed to consist of the reaction of hydrogen bromide, formed by decomposition of the brominated polymers with the methyl groups of the acrylate and methacrylate polymers.     

An Observation on the Microphase Separation of Poly(methyl methacrylate)-block-Polystyrene Copolymer

The well-ordered structures of block copolymer formed by self-assemble have attracted much attention as potentially interesting optical materials, especially as photonic crystals1,2. In order to achieve desirable photonic crystal properties, the morphologies of block copolymers should be controlled, including obtaining the correct size of domains for the optical frequencies of interest and attainment of long-range domain order and appropriate orientation. We know that the morphology of one blo…     

Photoinduced excimer formation of boron difluoride β-diketonates in poly(methyl methacrylate)

Russian Chemical Bulletin - The photochemical behavior of β-diketonates of boron difluoride in poly(methyl methacrylate) was studied. Excimers of boron chelates are formed in the course of UV...     

Influence of the third monomer on lauryl methacrylate–methyl methacrylate emulsion terpolymerization

An experimental study shows how the emulsion terpolymerization of lauryl methacrylate (LMA) and methyl methacrylate is influenced by the nature of the third monomer. The third monomer is either glycidyl methacrylate, hydroxyethyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl methacrylate, or styrene. We report the synthesis of terpolymer particles with an appreciably high content of the very hydrophobic LMA (between 0.2515 and 0.238 molar fraction in the monomer mixture) in 60:40 weight water/ethanol mixture as the continuous phase, poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) as a polymeric steric stabilizer, and potassium peroxodisulfate as the initiator. The emulsion terpolymerization proceeds smoothly without the formation of coagulum and leads to particles with an average diameter clearly below 1 μm. We discuss the overall polymerization behavior regarding conversion–time curves, particle morphology, and glass transition temperature of the terpolymers in dependence of the lyophilicity/lyophobicity of the monomer mixture.     

Dynamics of Poly(methyl methacrylate) in Ionic Liquids with Different Concentration and Cationic Structures

The dynamic behavior of entangled poly(methyl methacrylate)(PMMA) chains in both the traditional monocationic ionic liquid(MIL)and synthetic dicationic ionic liquid(DIL) with the same anion bis[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]imide([TFSI]-) has been examined over the wide composition range using differential scanning calorimetry and rheological measurements.PMMA/DIL and PMMA/MIL systems exhibit two glass transitions in the midrange of composition due to self-concentration effects.PMMA in DIL shows slo...     

Continuous styrene – methyl methacrylate – glycidyl methacrylate terpolymerizations in homogeneous mixtures with supercritical carbon dioxide

Free-radical terpolymerizations of styrene, methyl methacrylate, and glycidyl methacrylate were carried out in a tubular reactor in the presence of 20 wt.% CO₂ at temperatures between 120 and 180°C and pressures of 300 and 350 bar. The number average molecular weights, M_N, were mostly between 2000 and 3000 g·mol⁻¹ and polydispersity indices around 2. In part of the experiments molecular weights were controlled by n-dodecyl mercaptan serving as the chain-transfer agent. PREDICI modeling indicates that the targeted molecular weights of M_N∼2500 g·mol⁻¹ and polydispersities around 2 may also be reached by using an initiator cocktail, a mixture of two initiators with significantly different decomposition rate coefficients. The predictions are confirmed experimentally.     

Inhibitory effect of H_(3 + x)PMo_(12－x)V_xO_(40)-Ton the self-polymerization of methyl methacrylate

In this work,a series of molybdovanadophosphoric heteropoly acid quaternary ammonium salts H_(3+x)PMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T were synthesized and employed as a reaction inhibitor in the selfpolymerization of methyl methacrylate(MMA).The polymerization inhibition effect of H_(3+x)PMoPMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T)with different number of vanadium atoms and reaction dosages was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry(DSC).It shows that the inhibitory effect was improved with the increasing dosages of H_(3+x)PMoPMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T),and the polymerization inhibition was also affected by the number of vanadium atoms in the H_(3+x)PMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T .Furthermore,cyclic voltammograms(CV)was used to probe the mechanism of the inhibition reaction with H3+xPMo12xVxO40-T.The result of CV indicates that the inhibition reaction is an oxidation–reduction reaction.H_(3+x)PMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T can react directly with the MMA monomer radicals,which eliminated the MMA monomers,and therefore the self-polymerization of the MMA can be effectively inhibited by H_(3+x)PMo_(12 -x)V_xO40-T.     

Hydroformylation of methyl methacrylate via “in-situ” phosphinerhodium catalysis

It has been shown that in hydroformulation of methyl methacrylate with rhodium phosphine catalysts prepared “in situ” the regioselectivity is very sensitive not only to the reaction conditions but also to the basicity of the phosphine and to the presence of added Et₃N. At low P/Rh ratio chlororhodium species are catalytically active. No side reactions have been detected.     

Preparation of Poly(methyl methacrylate) Nanoparticles 15–50 nm in Diameter from Submicrometer-Sized Latex Particles

Russian Journal of Applied Chemistry - A procedure was developed for preparing poly(methyl methacrylate) nanoparticles of 15–50 nm size from coarser (200–300 nm) polymer latex particles...     

Optical properties of polymer blends composed of poly(methyl methacrylate) and ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymer

Optical properties for immiscible polymer blends composed of poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, and ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) are studied employing various EVA samples with different vinyl acetate contents. PMMA/EVA shows transparency at room temperature when the difference in refractive index between both phases is small. The light transmittance, however, decreases with increasing the ambient temperature. This phenomenon is attributed to the difference in the volume expansion ratio, leading to the difference in refractive index, between PMMA and EVA. It is found that addition of tricresyl phosphate, TCP, improves the transparency and its temperature dependence. As a result, a ternary PMMA/EVA/TCP blend shows high level of transparency in the wide temperature range, although it has apparent phase separated morphology.     

Selective sorption of atactic poly(methyl methacrylate) in polar binary mixtures—8. Chloroform-butyl acetate

We report the behaviour of PMMA in the polar binary mixture chloroform-butyl acetate at 298 K. Mark-Houwink-Sakurada constants, second virial coefficients, unperturbed dimensions and preferential sorption coefficients have been determined for this system at 298 K using viscometry and laser light scattering. No inversion in solvation was found; chloroform is preferentially adsorbed on PMMA over the whole composition range. Viscometric measurements suggest the possible existence of a complex between chloroform and butyl acetate; this complex may participate in the solvation phenomena.     

Influence of α-Fe2O3 nanorods on the thermal stability of poly(methyl methacrylate) synthesized by in situ bulk polymerisation of methyl methacrylate

α-Fe₂O₃ nanorods were incorporated into poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) by in situ radical polymerisation of methyl methacrylate initiated by 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile. The α-Fe₂O₃ nanorods were synthesized by forced hydrolysis of FeCl₃ and structural characterization was performed by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The molar mass and the polydispersity index of synthesized PMMA samples were determined by gel permeation chromatography. The content of residual monomer was determined by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The influence of α-Fe₂O₃ nanorods on the thermal stability of the polymer was investigated using thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry. The molar mass and polydispersity index of PMMA were dependent on the content of α-Fe₂O₃ nanorods. The values of the glass transition temperature of the nanocomposites were lower compared to pure PMMA. Also, the thermal stability of nanocomposites in nitrogen and air was different from that of pure PMMA.     

Thermal properties of the γ-Fe2O3/poly(methyl methacrylate) core/shell nanoparticles

Thermal properties of γ-Fe₂O₃/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) core/shell particles with an average core size of 4 nm were studied through measurements of thermogravimetry, powder X-ray diffraction and magnetization. The thermal degradation of the PMMA shell in the air was found to occur at temperatures lower by about 60 °C than that of free PMMA. Random scission of the PMMA chains seemed to be catalyzed by the core oxide. The γ-Fe₂O₃ to α-Fe₂O₃ structural transformation took place at different temperatures depending upon the shell material. Namely, α-Fe₂O₃ was the only product for the caprylate-capped γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles treated at 400 °C, whereas γ-Fe₂O₃ still remained for the γ-Fe₂O₃/PMMA composite treated at 500 °C. It is possible that some species containing silicon of the polymerization initiator origin were formed on the surface and prevented interparticle atomic diffusions needed for the γ–α transformation.     

Synthesis of a novel centipede-like copolymer of styrene and methyl methacrylate

A well-defined,A2B-type,centipede-like copolymer of styrene and methyl methacrylate(PS-PS-PMMA) was synthesized by the combination of living anionic polymerization and atom transfer radical polym-erization(ATRP) . The synthetic approach involves the coupling reaction of polystyrene(PS) backbone bearing 1,1-diphenylethene(DPE) pendant groups,produced by ATRP and Wittig reaction,with living polystyryllithium(PSLi) ,and subsequent polymerization of the resulting 1,1-diphenylmethyl anions with methy methacrylate. The centipede-like copolymer was characterized by 1H NMR,IR,SEC,SLS,and DSC measurements.     

Studies of aminolysis of acrylonitrile–divinylbenzene–methyl methacrylate copolymers

Aminolysis of nitrilacrylate–divinylbenzene–methyl methacrylate copolymers by diethylenetriamine is studied under various conditions. The effect of temperature and catalyst concentration on the properties of synthesized anion exchangers depending on the duration of aminolysis is investigated. The conditions for synthesizing anion exchangers with high capacity characteristics are proposed according to the study results.     

Fabrication, characterization, and supercooling suppression of nanoencapsulated n-octadecane with methyl methacrylate–octadecyl methacrylate copolymer shell

Supercooling of micro- and nanoencapsulated phase change material is widely observed as their diameters depress to a limitation upon cooling. The aim of this study is to suppress the supercooling of nanoencapsulated n-octadecane (NanoC18) using a novel copolymer consisting of long n-alkyl side chains as shell. Nanoencapsulations of n-octadecane with various compositions of poly(methyl methacrylate-co-octadecyl methacrylate) copolymer as shells were carried out by means of miniemulsion polymerization. Fabrication, morphology, diameter distributions, phase change behaviours, and thermal stabilities of nanocapsules were investigated using Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, a field-emission scanning electron microscope, a transmission electron microscope, particle size distribution analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analysis. The results indicate that a series of nanocapsules with core/shell structure and spherical shapes are fabricated with average diameters ranging from 373 to 398 nm. The average thickness of the shells is about 60 nm. All the NanoC18 crystallize into a stable triclinic phase via a metastable rotator phase (R_I) from the liquid phase. The crystallization temperature of n-octadecane within poly(methyl methacrylate) nanocapsules is considerably lower than that in bulk phase. Supercooling is effectively suppressed using the comb-like copolymer with crystallizable n-octadecyl side chains as shell. Octadecyl methacrylate is not only employed as a reactive costabilizer to suppress the influence of Ostwald ripening during the formation of nanocapsules but also as a functional monomer in the composition of the copolymer shell in order to suppress the supercooling of NanoC18.