Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol.67, No.1, 71-77, 1998
Poly(vinyl alcohol) as a stabilizer in the suspension polymerization of styrene: The effect of the molecular weight
The interfacial tension of the water-(PVA)/styrene system was measured as a function of the poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) concentration and temperature. Average size and particle-size distribution were obtained for a suspension of styrene in water using PVA as a stabilizer. We discuss the interfacial tension through the Zykonski equation to establish the behavior of the adsorption isotherms in unstirred systems and discuss the apparently contradictory results of the stirred experiment. We propose a simple configuration model that is congruent with both results.