Measurements of particle-size distribution during suspension polymerization

The particle-size distribution is one of the main characteristics of polymers produced by suspension polymerization which determines the final properties of the product. Since the on-line measurement of particle-size distribution during the course of polymerization is not a straightforward task, a technique has been developed to accomplish such a measurement for a predefined polymerization process. In this paper the experimental procedure is described in detail and the experimental data are shown for the batch suspension polymerization of methyl methacrylate using benzoyl peroxide as initiator, water as suspending phase and agarose as suspending agent. The particle-size distributions have been measured both for a base case and also when varying some operating conditions including stirring speed, water-to-monomer weight ratio, and suspending agent concentration. Average values and variances of the surface distribution and of the volume distribution are also computed and shown for comparison. (C) 1999 Society of Chemical Industry.