| Abstract: | For seeded emulsifier-free emulsion polymerizations of styrene/potassium persulfate (KPS)/water system using the three sizes of seeds: 1020, 1620, and 1923 Å, analysis on the data of conversion and MWD suggests a shell region polymerization mechanism for the particle growth period as the particle diameter is larger than about 1500–2000 Å. The shell region has thickness of about 100 Å. The occurrence of shell region polymerization is attributed to the higher average number of radicals per particle (n ? 2?7) for the large particle, causing the polymer radicals (with the sulfate ends anchoring on the particle surface) to be terminated by combination at lower MW. Thus, the radical ends have no chance to arrive at the core of the particles. As the smallest seed is used, the rate of polymerization is of zero order, the same as in the conventional emulsion polymerization. MW of the polymer produced in the cases, in which the shell region polymerization occurs, increases with conversion in the entire process, different from the conventional case in which the MW increases first up to about 60% conversion and then decreases. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |
