Mixed Mode of Particle Nucleation Mechanisms

Hansen and Ugelstad [37-39] suggested that all the micellar nucleation, homogeneous nucleation and monomer droplet nucleation were operative in emulsion polymerization with a concentration of surfactant greater than its CMC. This indicates that monomer-swollen micelles and particle nuclei and emulsified monomer droplets compete with one another for the incoming ohgomeric radicals from the continuous aqueous phase. Thus, the total rate of particle nucleation is given by 

Adsorption on existing particles or monomer droplets - Capture by micelles 

Equation (3.35) can be used to simulate the number density of particle nuclei in the transient state. The analytic solution with two adjustable parameters A2 and x) thus obtained is shown below  

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