Heat capacities of water swollen hydrophilic polymers above and below 0°C

Abstract

AbstractThe heat capacities of water swollen poly[2‐(2‐hydroxyethoxy)ethyl methacrylate] were determined in a DSC‐2 calorimeter within the temperature range 220–350K for concentrations from 0 to 1,2g of water per 1g of the polymer. At temperatures above 0°C the partial specific heat capacity of water in gel is concentration independent and equal to the specific heat capacity of pure liquid water. It seems, therefore, that water does not form stable icelike structures near polymer chains. To analyze phase transformations of water in gel below 0°C, general thermodynamic equations were derived and used as a basis for suggesting criteria which allow to decide whether in a given experiment the phase transformation proceeded in an equilibrium way. In measurements below the melting point of ice the conditions for an equilibrium process consist in the preceding heating of the frozen sample to a temperature close to the melting point, followed by cooling to 220K. The assessed composition dependence of the melting point depression is consistent with the dependence of activity on concentration obtained from measurements of water vapour sorption at 35°C. Analysis of data on the heat capacity below 0°C led to the conclusion that at a water content of 0,4g/g and lower, or at temperatures below 250K the crystallization of water from gel was inhibited by kinetic factors originating probably in the reduced diffusivity of water in gel, due to the reduced mobility of polymer chains. Hence, non‐freezing water need not be identical with “strongly bound” water; in the study of water structure in polymers based on heat capacities, preference should be given to data obtained at usual and elevated temperatures.