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Morphology of latex particles formed by poly(methyl methacrylate)‐seeded emulsion polymerization of styrene
Author(s) -
Cho Iwhan,
Lee KyungWoo
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.1985.070300510
Subject(s) - emulsion polymerization , styrene , morphology (biology) , methyl methacrylate , materials science , polymer chemistry , emulsion , chemical engineering , polymerization , copolymer , polymer science , composite material , polymer , biology , genetics , engineering
Poly(methyl methacrylate)–polystyrene composite particle latexes were prepared by poly(methyl methacrylate)‐seeded emulsion polymerization of styrene employing batch, swelling‐batch, and semibatch methods. The changes in particle morphology taking place during the polymerization reaction were followed by electron microscopy. Anchoring effect exerted by ionic terminal groups introduced by ionic initiator was found to be the main factor in controlling the particle morphology. The polymer particles obtained by oil‐soluble hydrophobic initiators such as azobisisobutyronitrile and 4,4′‐azobis‐(4‐cyanovaleric acid) gave the inverted core‐shell morphology. Water‐soluble hydrophilic initiator, K 2 S 2 O 8 , also gave the inverted core‐shell morphology. However, in this case the occurrence of the halfmoonlike, the sandwichlike, and the core‐shell morphologies were also observed depending upon the polymerization conditions. The distribution of terminal SO 4 −groups on the surface area of polystyrene particles could be controlled by initiator concentration and polymerization temperature. Viscosity of polymerization loci dictated the movement of polymer molecules, thus causing the unevenness of particle shape and phase separation at high viscosity state. Viscosity was controlled by the styrene/poly(methyl methacrylate) ratio, the addition of a chain transfer agent or a solvent which is common to polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate).