Abstract
Polystyrene is a common thermoplastic and is produced in different shapes and forms. The scale of manufacture of polystyrene has grown over the years because of its numerous applications and low cost of production. However, it is flammable, brittle, has low resistance to chemicals, and is susceptible to photodegradation on exposure to ultraviolet radiation. There is therefore scope to improve the properties of polystyrene and to extend its useful lifetime. The current work reports the synthesis of organometallic complexes and investigates their use as photostabilizers for polystyrene. The reaction of excess ibuprofen sodium salt and appropriate metal chlorides in boiling methanol gave the corresponding complexes excellent yields. The organometallic complexes (0.5% by weight) were added to polystyrene and homogenous thin films were made. The polystyrene films blended with metal complexes were irradiated with ultraviolet light for extended periods of time and the stabilizing effects of the additives were assessed. The infrared spectroscopy, weight loss, depression in molecular weight, and surface morphology of the irradiated blends containing organometallic complexes were investigated. All the synthesized organometallic complexes acted as photostabilizers for polystyrene. The damage (e.g., formation of small polymeric fragments, decrease in weight and molecular weight, and irregularities in the surface) that took place in the polystyrene blends was much lower in comparison to the pure polystyrene film. The manganese-containing complex was very effective in stabilizing polystyrene and was superior to cobalt and nickel complexes.
Highlights
The FTIR spectrum for ibuprofen has a broad peak at 3000–3300 cm−1 corresponding to the O-H stretching vibrations of the hydroxyl group of the carboxylic acid moiety, which disappeared on formation of the sodium salt and metal complexes
Three metal complexes containing the ibuprofen moiety were synthesized with excellent yields using a simple procedure
Ultraviolet and infrared spectroscopy were performed, and the elemental composition, magnetic susceptibilities, and molar conductivities determined for the synthesized metal complexes
Summary
Additives should be easy and cheap to produce, efficient at a very low concentration, pose no danger to the environment, and not lead to undesirable changes in the physical properties of plastics (e.g., alteration of color). Additives for the reduction of photodecomposition and photooxidation of plastics can act as absorbers for light, quenchers for energy, decomposers for radicals, and antioxidants [15]. Of interest in this work are additives containing aromatic moieties and/or metals in their structures. Ibuprofen is a medication for the treatment of fever and inflammation [26,27] It is solid, chemically stable, aromatic, and contains a heteroatom (oxygen). As a continuation of our previous work [18–20], we report for the first time the synthesis of three metallic complexes containing the ibuprofen moiety and investigation of their applicability as stabilizers for PS
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