Dispersion polymerization of uniform cross-linked polystyrene microspheres in butan-1-ol

摘要

Butan-1-ol can be used as the solvent in the synthesis of poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene-co-acrylic acid) microspheres by dispersion polymerization of a mixture of styrene, divinylbenzene (DVB), and acrylic acid (AA). Varying the proportion of the crosslinker DVB affects the size distribution and particle morphology profoundly, with 0.5-1.0% w/w producing spherical particles, whereas 2.0% w/w DVB produces irregular, concave morphologies. Varying the amount of AA from 5-7% w/w increases the average diameter of the spherical particles, whereas 9% w/w AA results in ovoid particles with dimpled surface morphology. In an optimized synthesis using 1.0% w/w DVB and 5% AA, uniform polymer microspheres with an average diameter of 0.8 mm and a coefficient of variation (CV) of diameter of 8.2% are produced. The use of a medium-polarity solvent, such as butan-1-ol, as the solvent for dispersion polymerization will facilitate the incorporation of non-polar moieties, such as organically-passivated quantum dots, into the polymer during synthesis. (C) 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.