title: Synthesis of porous poly(styrene-co-acrylic acid) microspheres through one-step soap-free emulsion polymerization: whys and wherefores.
abstract: Synthesis of porous poly(styrene-co-acrylic acid) (PS-co-PAA) microspheres through one-step soap-free emulsion polymerization is reported. Various porous PS-co-PAA microspheres with the particle size ranging from 150 to 240 nm and with the pore size ranging from 4 to 25 nm are fabricated. The porous structure of the microspheres is confirmed by the transmission electron microscopy measurement and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis. The reason for synthesis of the porous PS-co-PAA microspheres is discussed, and the phase separation between the encapsulated hydrophilic poly(acrylic acid) segment and the hydrophobic polystyrene domain within the PS-co-PAA microspheres is ascribed to the pore formation. The present synthesis of the porous PS-co-PAA microspheres is anticipated to be a new and convenient way to fabricate porous polymeric particles.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Functional Polymer Materials of Ministry of Education, Institute of Polymer Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Yaoyao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xiaohui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jianxiong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Da
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wangqing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000179:Acrylates / Q000737:chemistry*; D004655:Emulsions; D008863:Microspheres; D010316:Particle Size; D058105:Polymerization; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis*; D011137:Polystyrenes / Q000737:chemistry*; D016062:Porosity; D012915:Soaps / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000179:Acrylates; D004655:Emulsions; D011108:Polymers; D011137:Polystyrenes; D012915:Soaps; C036658:acrylic acid