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Polystyrene Microstructured Foams Formed by Thermally Induced Phase Separation from Cyclohexanol Solution
Author(s) -
Nistor Andra,
Vonka Michal,
Rygl Adam,
Voclova Malvina,
Minichova Maria,
Kosek Juraj
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
macromolecular reaction engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.37
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1862-8338
pISSN - 1862-832X
DOI - 10.1002/mren.201600007
Subject(s) - polystyrene , materials science , cyclohexanol , work (physics) , chemical engineering , phase (matter) , hildebrand solubility parameter , morphology (biology) , thermodynamics , polymer , composite material , catalysis , organic chemistry , chemistry , engineering , physics , genetics , biology
The thermally induced phase separation can be used to prepare materials of various microstructured morphologies that define their applications. In this work, foams formed from a polystyrene‐cyclohexanol solution are prepared, characterized, and modeled. To obtain a reliable thermodynamic description, cloud points are determined by an in‐house fabricated thermooptical device. The Flory–Huggins lattice model combined with Hansen solubility theory is employed as input to the Cahn–Hilliard model of phase separation dynamics. The previously reported model is extended by incorporating polar interactions. The resulting experimental and predicted morphologies are compared and good prediction capabilities of the model regarding the resulting morphology and its characteristics are obtained. The experimental and modeling work extends the knowledge of the mechanism and the kinetics of foam morphology evolution for thermal and sound insulation applications.