Abstract
The polymer-surface structure of a physical blend of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with polystyrene (PS) was investigated by inverse gas chromatography and scanning electron microscopy. Phase separation occurred at a composition higher than ca. 30 wt% PEO. The PEO domain formed the island phase from ca. 30 to 44 wt% PEO. From 44 to 50 wt% PEO, the morphology of the polymer surface changed greatly: the PEO and PS domains formed the island and sea phases, respectively. In addition to these main domains, a smaller PS domain existed in the PEO domain; furthermore, the inversion of the sea-island phase took place around 50 wt% PEO. At loadings higher than 50 wt% PEO, the PEO domain formed the sea phase. The surface of the PS domain always protruded above the PEO domain regardless of the composition. At loadings lower than ca. 20 wt% PEO, the PEO domain was completely covered by the PS domain. These morphological changes in the polymer surface were perhaps due to the difference in the relative intensity of surface tension between PEO and PS. It was also found that poly(ethylene glycol) mono-p-nonylphenyl ether acts as a surfactant in this polymer blend system.
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Suzuki, T., Murakami, Y., Inui, T. et al. Morphological Study of Hydrophilic–Hydrophobic Polymer System by Inverse Gas Chromatography: Physical Blends of Poly(ethylene oxide) with Polystyrene. Polym J 13, 1027–1035 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.13.1027
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.13.1027