Example from polystyrene standard

Studies of polystyrene standards in THF solvent are not uncommon. however, bothersome discrepancies still exist in the literature and in practice. For example, the published Mar 1<-Houw i nk parameters are in wide disagreement il. The purpose of this work is to examine a large number of PS standards from multiple suppliers, covering a wide range of molecular weights. T -,e intrinsic viscosities and GPC retention volumes have been measured and used independently to correlate and crosscheck the molecular weights provided by the suppliers. 

Figure 6-4. Example of a separation of calibration mixture of polystyrene standards. (Reprinted from reference 4, with permission from Phenomenex.)...

Tough transparent sheet may be produced by blending standard polystyrene with block copolymer in an extruder in the ratios 80 20 to 20 80, depending on the application of the products subsequently thermoformed from the sheet. For example, sheet for thermoforming an egg tray will not require the same level of impact strength as that required for jam jars. 

The separation of organic mixtures into groups of components of similar chemical type was one of the earliest applications of solvent extraction. In this chapter the term solvent is used to define the extractant phase that may contain either an extractant in a diluent or an organic compound that can itself act as an extractant. Using this technique, a solvent that preferentially dissolves aromatic compounds can be used to remove aromatics from kerosene to produce a better quality fuel. In the same way, solvent extraction can be used to produce high-purity aromatic extracts from catalytic reformates, aromatics that are essentially raw materials in the production of products such as polystyrene, nylon, and Terylene. These features have made solvent extraction a standard technique in the oil-refining and petrochemical industries. The extraction of organic compounds, however, is not confined to these industries. Other examples in this chapter include the production of pharmaceuticals and environmental processes. 

As explained in Sections 16.3.4, 6.4.1, and 16.4.2, SEC is a nonabsolute method, which needs calibration. The most popular calibration materials are narrow molar mass distribution polystyrenes (PS). Their molar mass averages are determined by the classical absolute methods—or by SEC applying either the absolute detection or the previously calibrated equipment. The latter approach may bring about the transfer and even the augmentation of errors. Therefore, it is recommended to apply exclusively the certified well-characterized materials for calibrations. These are often called PS calibration standards and are readily available from numerous companies in the molar mass range from about 600 to over 30,000,000g moL. Their prices are reasonable and on average (much) lower than the cost of other narrow MMD polymers. Other available homopolymer calibration materials include various poly(acrylate)s and poly(methacrylate)s. They are, similar to PS, synthesized by anionic polymerization. Some calibration materials are prepared by the methods of preparative fractionation, for example, poly(isobutylene)s and poly(vinylchloride)s. 

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