Co-nonsolvent systems for poly (-caprolactone) and poly (methyl methacrylate)

Abstract

The cloud points for the co-nonsolvent systems (i) pyridine (PY) + formic acid (FA) towards poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) or poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and (ii) pyridine + acetic acid (AA) towards PCL have been experimentally determined as a function of solvent composition at fixed polymer concentrations. Heats of mixing for the (FA + PY) system have also been measured. The single liquid approximation model correctly predicts for the (PY + FA) system the solvent composition at which the solvent power of the mixture is the poorest, provided it is recognized that the solvent system is comprised of pyridinium formate (PYFA) as one component and either PY or FA (depending on which is present in excess over 1:1 mole ratio) as the other. With the other co-nonsolvent system, the prediction is not as good. A possible reason for the discrepancy has been given.