Phase behavior and modeling of the poly(methyl methacrylate)–CO 2–methyl methacrylate system

Abstract

Cloud-point data for the system poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)–CO 2–methyl methacrylate (MMA) are measured in the temperature range of 26 to 170°C, to pressures as high as 2500 bar, and with cosolvent concentrations of 10.4, 28.9, and 48.4 wt.%. PMMA does not dissolve in pure CO 2 to 255°C and 2550 bar. The cloud-point curve for the PMMA–CO 2–10.4 wt.% MMA system exhibits a negative slope that reaches 2500 bar at 105°C. With 28.9 wt.% MMA the cloud-point curve remains relatively flat at ∼900 bar for temperatures between 25 and 170°C. With 48.4 wt.% MMA the cloud-point curve exhibits a positive slope that extends to 20°C and ∼100 bar. Pressure-composition isotherms are also reported for the CO 2–MMA system at 40.0, 80.0, 105.5°C. This system exhibits type-I phase behavior with a continuous mixture–critical curve. The Peng–Robinson (PR) and SAFT equations of state model the CO 2–MMA data reasonably well without any binary interaction parameters, although the PR equation provides a better representation of the mixture-critical region. It is not possible to obtain even a qualitative fit of the PMMA–MMA–CO 2 data with the SAFT equation of state. The SAFT model qualitatively shows that the cloud-point pressure decreases with increasing MMA concentration and that the cloud-point curve exhibits a positive slope for very high concentrations of MMA in solution.