Polystyrene additives, effect

In 95-160°C region (above Tg), molecular dipoles are able to orient under the external field. An additional effect of polarization was observed which increases the permittivity of the P4FST (i.e., e = 5.35 at 140°C and 1.09 kHz). Through tan8 (Figure 20.19b), it is possible to note a relaxation process known under a-relaxation which is related to the cooperative reorientation motion of large segments above T. The dielectric loss is lower around 10 (i.e., 0.06 at 1.09 kHz). Similar behavior was observed in the atactic polystyrene [116]. 

In polymers such as polystyrene that do not readily undergo charring, phosphoms-based flame retardants tend to be less effective, and such polymers are often flame retarded by antimony—halogen combinations (see Styrene). However, even in such noncharring polymers, phosphoms additives exhibit some activity that suggests at least one other mode of action. Phosphoms compounds may produce a barrier layer of polyphosphoric acid on the burning polymer (4,5). Phosphoms-based flame retardants are more effective in styrenic polymers blended with a char-forming polymer such as polyphenylene oxide or polycarbonate. 

PL can be used as a sensitive probe of oxidative photodegradation in polymers. After exposure to UV irradiation, materials such as polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, and PTFE exhibit PL emission characteristic of oxidation products in these hosts. The effectiveness of stabilizer additives can be monitored by their effect on PL efficiency. 

Optical properties of the blends are somewhat dependent on the molecular weight of the polystyrene, presence of additives such as lubricant in the polystyrene, ratio of polystyrene to SBS, processing conditions and mixing effectiveness of the extruder. It is stated that the optical properties of the sheets are similar whether linear or radial type stereoblock polymers are used. 

In addition to monomers and the initiator, an inert liquid (diluent) must be added to the monomer phase to influence the pore structure and swelling behavior of the beaded resin. The monomer diluent is usually a hydrophobic liquid such as toluene, heptane, or pentanol. It is noteworthy that the namre and the percentage of the monomer diluent also influence the rate of polymerization. This may be mainly a concentration or precipitation effect, depending on whether the diluent is a solvent or precipitant for the polymer. For example, when the diluent is a good solvent such as toluene to polystyrene, the polymerizations proceed at a correspondingly slow rate, whereas with a nonsolvent such as pentanol to polystyrene the opposite is true. 

A remarkable effect of the reaction temperature on the enantioselectivity of the addition of butyllithium to benzaldehyde was found with polystyrene-bound cvs-enofo-S-dimethylamino -(benzyloxy)bornane (8)12. When the soluble monomeric ligand 9 was tested, the enantioselectivity increased with decreasing temperature (53% ee at — 78 C). In contrast, the polymer-bound chiral additive 8 showed an optimum at — 20 C (32% ee). Although the enantioselectivity of this addition reaction is low, an advantage of a polymer-bound chiral auxiliary is that it can be removed by a simple filtration. 

Alkanesulfonates act as an external lubricant in PVC, polystyrene, and engineering thermoplastics. They have a good release effect and assist flow. Addition is in the concentration range between 0.1 and 2.0 parts per 100 parts resin (phr). Because of their low volatility, alkanesulfonates are also used as a processing aid for high-melting engineering thermoplastics. 

Alkanesulfonates are an important internal antistatic agent for polystyrene (PS) as well. If it is not possible to apply the pure active surfactant with the intended processing machine, the use of a master batch of alkanesulfonates and an appropriate polystyrene product is recommended. The addition of alkanesulfonates in amounts greater than 0.3 phr can cause hazing also in transparent PS articles. The antistatic effect of alkanesulfonates in PS is demonstrated in Fig. 41. 

The endopolygalacturonase obtained from a Kluyveromyces marxianus culture broth was purified through the addition of specifically designed core-shell microspheres consisting of an inner polystyrene core and an outer shell constituted by a poly(methacrylic acid-co-ethylacrylate) statistical copolymer. These microspheres were previously found very effective in purifying the pectinlyase within a commercial pectinase sample [15]. 

Transfer constants for polystyrene chain radicals at 60° and 100°C, obtained from the slopes of these plots and others like them, are given in the second and third columns of Table XIII. Almost any solvent is susceptible to attack by the propagating free radical. Even cyclohexane and benzene enter into chain transfer, although to a comparatively small extent only. The specific reaction rate at 100°C for transfer with either of these solvents is less than two ten-thousandths of the rate for the addition of the chain radical to styrene monomer. A fifteenfold dilution with benzene was required to halve the molecular weight, i.e., to double l/xn from its value (l/ rjo for pure styrene (see Fig. 16). Other hydrocarbons are more effective in lowering the degree of polymerization through chain transfer. 

---