Swelling behavior of N-t-butylacrylamide copolymer and terpolymers

Abstract

Copolymers and terpolymers of N-t-butylacrylamide (TBA) with 2-acrylamido-2-methyl propane sulfonic acid (AMPS) and N-hydroxy methyl acrylamide (NHMAAM) were prepared by solution polymerization in a 1:1 (v/v) mixture of methanol and water at 50 degrees C keeping the TBA content in the feed constant at 60% based on mole ratio. The contents of AMPS or NHMAAM used for the preparation of TBA-AMPS and TBA-NHMAAM copolymers were 40 mole %. Molar percentages of AMPS and NHMAAM monomers in the feed for the preparation of TBA-AMPS-NHMAAM terpolymers were varied as 10:30, 20:20, and 30:10, respectively. The effects of temperature, AMPS and crosslinker contents, and the drying of swollen gels on the swelling behavior of ionic and non-ionic TBA gels were investigated in distilled water between 10-50 degrees C and in buffer solutions having various pHs (1.9, 3.1, 5.6, 7.1, and 9.8) with constant ionic strength Of 0.08 M at 20 degrees C using both the dry and the swollen forms of gels. The chemical structures and microscopic morphologies of the polymers were investigated by FIR and SEM, respectively.