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Thermally expandable microspheres of poly (acrylonitrile/ethyl methacrylate/methacrylic acid) with fast thermal response property

Li Jun Ji (College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Ya Shuai Jiang (College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Ge Liang (Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Zhu Qing Liu (Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Jian Zhu (Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Kai Huang (Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)
Ai Ping Zhu (Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China)

Pigment & Resin Technology

ISSN: 0369-9420

Article publication date: 6 March 2017

281

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to synthesise a thermally expandable microsphere (TEMS) with fast thermal response property and small expansion temperature range, and investigate the factors affecting the expansion properties of the microspheres.

Design/methodology/approach

A new kind of TEMS with fast thermal response property was synthesised by suspension polymerisation method, using acrylonitrile, ethyl methacrylate and methacrylic acid as the main monomers; Mg(OH)2 as the main dispersing agent; and isooctane or n-hexane or n-pentane as the blowing agent.

Findings

The TEMS possessed the best expansion capacity when encapsulated isooctane and n-hexane were about 18.5 Wt.%. The expansion process of the TEMS could be finished by raising the temperature to 18°C from the expansion onset, much less than the reported 30-50°C. The morphology of the TEMS turned from sphere to irregular concave shape following the content increase of the blowing agent.

Originality/value

A new kind of TEMS composed of acrylonitrile/ethyl methacrylate/methacrylic acid as the polymer shell was synthesised. These TEMS showed the fastest thermal response speed reported.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

L.J.'s work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51273171), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No. BK20131226) and a project funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions.

Citation

Ji, L.J., Jiang, Y.S., Liang, G., Liu, Z.Q., Zhu, J., Huang, K. and Zhu, A.P. (2017), "Thermally expandable microspheres of poly (acrylonitrile/ethyl methacrylate/methacrylic acid) with fast thermal response property", Pigment & Resin Technology, Vol. 46 No. 2, pp. 115-121. https://doi.org/10.1108/PRT-08-2015-0070

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited

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