Comparison of the molecular weight and size measurement of polyisobutylenes by size exclusion chromatography/multi‐angle laser light scattering and viscometry

Abstract

The effect of the molecular weight (MW), size, and architecture on polymer properties has been an important topic of polymer science and engineering. Structure–property relationship studies require precision synthesis and accurate characterization of model polymers. In a closely related article, we report the measurement of the MWs and size of highly branched arborescent polyisobutylenes (arb-PIBs) synthesized by inimer-type living carbocationic polymerization. Accurate MW measurement is critical for establishing structure–property correlations. The MW measurement of branched polymers is not obvious. With the advent of new size exclusion chromatography (SEC) techniques, validation studies are necessary. In this article, we compare various so-called hyphenated SEC techniques for the analysis of linear polyisobutylenes (PIBs) and correlate SEC data with low shear viscosity (Mooney) data. The fundamentals of SEC have been discussed. Here a brief overview and evaluation of the various hyphenated SEC techniques are given.