Phase behavior of the poly(neopentyl methacrylate) + supercritical fluid solvents + neopentyl methacrylate system and CO 2 + neopentyl methacrylate mixtures at high pressure

Abstract

High-pressure phase behaviors are measured for the CO 2 + neopentyl methacrylate (NPMA) system at 40, 60, 80, 100, and 120 °C and pressure up to 160 bar. This system exhibits type-I phase behavior with a continuous mixture-critical curve. The experimental results for the CO 2 + NPMA system are modeled using the Peng–Robinson equation of state. Experimental cloud-point data up to the temperature of 180 °C and the pressure of 2000 bar are presented for ternary mixtures of poly(neopentyl methacrylate) [poly(NPMA)] + supercritical solvents + NPMA systems. Cloud-point pressures of poly(NPMA) + CO 2 + NPMA system are measured in the temperature range of 60–180 °C and to pressures as high as 2000 bar with NPMA concentration of 0.0, 5.2, 19.0, 28.1 and 40.2 wt%. It appears that adding 51.2 wt% NPMA to the poly(NPMA) + CO 2 mixture does significantly change the phase behavior. Cloud-point curves are obtained for the binary mixtures of poly(NPMA) in supercritical propane, propylene, butane, 1-butene, and dimethyl ether (DME). The impact of dimethyl ether concentration on the phase behavior of the poly(NPMA) + CO 2 + x wt% DME system is also measured at temperature of 180 °C and pressure range of 36–2000 bar. This system changes the pressure–temperature ( P– T) slope of the phase behavior curves from upper critical solution temperature (UCST) region to lower critical solution temperature (LCST) region as the NPMA concentration increases.