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Homogeneous nanocellular foams from styrenic-acrylic polymer blends

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2013

Stéphane Costeux ,
Shana P. Bunker  and
Hyun K. Jeon
Stéphane Costeux*
Affiliation:
The Dow Chemical Company, Dow Coatings & Construction, Midland, Michigan 48674
Shana P. Bunker
Affiliation:
The Dow Chemical Company, Dow Coatings & Construction, Midland, Michigan 48674
Hyun K. Jeon
Affiliation:
The Dow Chemical Company, Dow Electronic Materials, Dow Seoul Technology Center, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, 445-170 (Korea)
*
a)Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: sccosteux@dow.com
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Abstract

Nano-cellular foams were successfully produced from blends of styrenic and acrylic polymers by a two-step batch foaming process using carbon dioxide as the blowing agent. Addition of poly(ethyl methacrylate) or poly(methyl methacrylate-co-ethyl acrylate) to styrene-acrylonitrile copolymers, even at a low level, resulted in very homogeneous foams with smaller cell size and narrower cell size distribution than with the individual polymers. The best nanofoams produced from miscible blends have average cell sizes below 100 nm, cell densities up to 5 × 1015 cm−3 and medium-to-low relative densities (void fraction between 60 and 70%). Contrary to previous studies, it was found that blends with lower CO2 solubility gave higher cell density nanofoams. This suggests new mechanisms for the nucleation of foams from these blends at the nanoscale.

Type
Invited Papers
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 28 , Issue 17: Focus Issue: Advances in the Synthesis, Characterization, and Properties of Bulk Porous Materials , 14 September 2013 , pp. 2351 - 2365
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2013 

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References

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