Modified Polyacrylate‐Based Latexes Containing Silicone

Abstract

Modified polyacrylate‐based latexes containing silicone were prepared by the emulsion copolymerization of three acrylic monomers [methyl methacrylate (MMA), n‐butyl acrylate (BA), and acrylic acid (AA)] and vinyl triethoxysilane (VTS), using disodium ethoxyhydrasulfosuccinate (A‐102) as the emulsifier and potassium persulfate as the initiator. The effects of the concentrations of A‐102, K2S2O8, VTS and the effects of reaction temperature on the total monomer conversion (%C) and the polymerization rate (R p) were investigated. It was found that the R p is proportional to the concentrations of A‐102 and K2S2O8 raised to the power of 0.35 and 0.48, respectively, while inversely proportional to the concentration of VTS raised to the power of 0.64. The overall activation energy of the emulsion polymerization was estimated to be 81.09 kJ/mol. Infrared spectroscopy (IR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses confirmed the modification reaction. For the modified polyacrylate latex prepared in the presence of 0.402 mol/L VTS, the spherical latex particles are fairly monodispersed and have an average diameter of 95.29 nm. The VTS amount has a great influence on the properties of the resulting latexes and their corresponding films. When compared with the pure polyacrylate latex, the modified polyacrylate‐based latexes containing silicone are characteristic of lower surface tension and better film properties such as lower water adsorption and enhanced thermal stability.