Vapour sorption studies of polymer-solution thermodynamics using a piezoelectric quartz crystal microbalance

G J Price, D A Haddon, A Bainbridge, J M Buley

OAI: oai:purehost.bath.ac.uk:publications/cd4edce1-6e68-440e-b403-abc9152ed19d • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/pi.2062

A quartz crystal microbalance was used as the basis of a vapour sorption apparatus to measure thermodynamic interaction parameters of polystyrene, poly(4-chlorostyrene) and poly(methyl methacrylate) with a number of solvents. The apparatus was shown to give rapid and reliable results by comparison with literature results for poly(dimethyl siloxane). Measurements of activity coefficients and Flory-Huggins interaction parameters were correlated with the solution behaviour of the components and revealed some hitherto unreported effects of the solution concentration in polar systems.