Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol.78, No.9, 1628-1635, 2000
On the miscibility of liquid polybutadienes
The miscibility of a new type of liquid polybutadiene and dihydroxypolybutadiene with various organic compounds was examined. The aim was to collect data which could be used in the evaluation of the role of miscibility in polyurethanes prepared from this new polymer. Qualitative tests using the cloud-point method were made in the temperature range from laboratory conditions up to 140 degrees C. Results were put on a common basis by the solvation equation and some characteristics derived from the electrostatic potential. Marked differences in the miscibility behavior between pure and hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene with hydroxyl compounds were revealed. The presence of only two hydroxyl groups in a relatively long hydrocarbon chain may thus affect properties of the molecule. Polar molecules are not, in general, miscible with polybutadienes. Polarity may be balanced and miscibility enhanced by supporting pi-electron-interaction capabilities, H-bond basicity, or a sufficiently long low-polar part of a partner molecule. Other ways of improving miscibility is the nonsymmetrical placement of polar groups in the molecule structure.