Review of Recent Problems concerned with Emulsion Polymerization

This Report will be concerned primarily with recent developments in the understanding of the mechanistic aspects of emulsion polymerization, rather than with such matters as the chemical engineering aspects or the applications of the polymer colloids produced by the reaction. The Report wilt commence by briefly reviewing some of the more important of the problems concerned with the reaction which have received recent attention. This review will provide a framework within which to order some at least of the new contributions to which attention will be drawn in the remainder of the Report. 

3 Review of Recent Probtems concerned with Enmlrion Polymerization 

Two distinct mechanisms have been proposed for particle nucleation. The older 

An important problem concerning Interval II which has received attention in recent years is whether or not the concentration of monomer within the reaction loci is always equal to what it would be were no monomer being consumed by polymerization within the loci. Until comparatively recently, the usual view was that the transfer of monomer from droplets to reaction loci is sufficiently rapid to keep pace with the rate of consumption of monomers within the loci.This view has since been challenged, but the present consensus view seems to be essentially the traditional view. 

A further problem which concerns both Intervals II and III of the reaction (but especially the latter) is the extent to which the course of the polymerization 

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