Self-association versus interassociation in hydrogen bonded polymer blends: 1. Determination of equilibrium constants from miscible poly(2,6-dialkyl-4-vinyl phenol) blends

Abstract

Equilibrium constants that describe the self-association of poly(2,6-dimethyl-4-vinyl phenol) and poly(2,6-diisopropyl-4-vinyl phenol) together with their interassociation to complimentary (co)polymers that contain carbonyl moeties, such as methacrylates and acetoxy groups, have been determined from i.r. studies of miscible polymer blend systems containing poly(n-butyl methacrylate) and an ethylene-co-vinyl acetate copolymer. A comparison of these equilibrium constant values with those previously determined for analogous poly(4-vinyl phenol) (PVPh) blends reveals that interassociation is accentuated over self-association in the case of the partially hindered poly(2,6-dialkyl-4-vinyl phenol)s. This is a favourable trend for polymer blend miscibility. Copyright © 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.