Abstract:

Crosslinked porous poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene) microspheres with tunable particle and pore diameters were synthesized by suspension polymerization and characterized by optical microscopy, SEM and N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherm. The particle diameters can be controlled by tuning the content of poly(vinyl alcohol), the water-oil ratio, the stirring rate and the amount of porogen. At the same time, the pore diameters can be tuned by adjusting the type and amount of porogens and the ratio of mixed porogens. The particle diameters decrease with the increase of the amount of PVA, the water-oil ratio and the stirring rate. Both the particle and pore diameters increase with the increase of the amount of porogen and the difference in solubility parameters between the polymer and the porogen. The particle and pore diameters of crosslinked microspheres with 27% crosslinking density are controlled in the range of 100~300 μm and 8~36 nm, respectively. These porous poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene) microspheres are suitable supports for solid phase synthesis.

Key words: suspension polymerization, porous sphere, crosslinked particle