Formation of sulfonated aromatic ketone chromophores within styrene-acrylic acid copolymers and their pH-responsive color change

Styrene-acrylic acid copolymer was synthesized via solution polymerization and then sulfonated by concentrated sulfuric acid. This sulfonated copolymer displays an obvious pH-responsive color change in aqueous solutions (1 g/L) from yellow (pH <6) to khaki (pH 6 to 7)/red (pH 7 to 8) to purple (pH >8). This response is as quick as for small-molecule pH indicators such as methyl orange and phenolphthalein within 1 s and can be reversible. The lowest critical concentration of this pH-responsive copolymer solution is around 0.1 g/L, which is about 50-500 times the necessary amount used for conventional small-molecule pH indicators. An intramolecular cyclization mechanism between a neighboring carboxyl group and a benzene ring to form a sulfonated aromatic ketone is proposed to explain this pH-responsive color change behavior. The molar ratio of 1:1 for styrene to acrylic acid is the most favorable for forming neighboring benzene and carboxyl group pairs in the copolymer chains and subsequently yields sulfonated aromatic ketone chromophores at full capacity.