Theoretical Analysis of Nitroxide-Mediated Copolymerization of Styrene and alpha-Methyl-Styrene under Different Operating Policies and Reactor Designs

FORTUNATTI, C.;; SARMORIA, C.; BRANDOLIN, A.; ASTEASUAIN, M.

Macromolecular Reaction Engineering

WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Lugar: Weinheim; Año: 2014 vol. 8 p. 260 - 281

1862-8338

The polymerization that IUPAC terms reversible-deactivation radical polymerization is a controlled radical polymerization technique (CRP) that offers the possibility of producing polymers with tailored properties without the stringent restrictions required in ionic polymerization. In this work we present a theoretical analysis of the influence of operating and design conditions on the final product properties for the nitroxide-mediated copolymerization (NMP) of styrene (St) and α-methyl styrene (AMS). Several reactor configurations are analyzed (batch, semibatch, and tubular with and without side feeds) along with changes in feeding policy and temperature profile. For this purpose a mathematical model is developed to predict copolymer average properties and the complete bivariate MWD. The results obtained are very helpful in establishing design parameters and optimal operating policies according to the desired copolymer microstructure and they underline the importance of simulation as a powerful tool in process optimization.