hermanso@che.udel.edu

Microemulsion polymerization

Through microemulsion polymerization nanosize polymerized particles can be produced. These polymerized particles have higher molecular weights and demonstrate faster kinetics than polymers formed through conventional emulsion polymerization. In the past our group has made many important contributions to the field of microemulsion polymerization. However, microemulsion polymerization is still not understood well enough in order to create an industrial feasible microemulsion polymerization process. Currently, the amount of surfactant required in a microemulsion processes is too high for the amount of polymer produced. The goal of this research is to investigate the microemulsion polymerization mechanisms effecting surfactant efficiency and utilize these mechanisms to polymerize microemulsions using less surfactant.