VAPOR-LIQUID EQUILIBRIA FOR MIXTURES OF TOLUENE AND POLYSTYRENE WITH DIFFERENT MOLECULAR WEIGHTS

An experimental system for measuring the VLE of polymer solutions based on the staticvapor-pressure method has been established,VLE data for mixtures of toluene and polystyrene withdifferent molecular weight covering a wide range from 2.98×10~3 to 3.84×10~6 were obtained at 35℃.The reduced pressure p/p°versus weight fraction W plot is found to be independent on the molecularweight of the polymer within the experimental error.Calculated activity coefficients are also independenton the molecular weight.However,for the Flory-Huggins interaction parameter x,not only a strongconcentration dependence is observed,but also the molecular weight of the polymer exerts definiteinfluence.Generally,the parameter x slightly increases as the molecular weight of the polymer decreasesespecially when the molecular weight is low.The dependence of the parameter x on the molecularweight can be neglected when the molecular weight of polymer is greater than 1.00×10~4.