Synthesis of cyclic polystyrene in supercritical carbon dioxide green solvent

چکیده مقاله

This study presents the synthesis of cyclic polystyrene (cPS) in the supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂) media for the first time. For this purpose, first of all α−ω difunctionalized polystyrene was prepared in the SC-CO₂ solvent within the pressure range from 100 to 230 bar and at a temperature below the conventional methods 80℃℃. The end-to-end reaction method was then used to make cPS in SC-CO₂ solvent with CH₂Cl₂ as a co-solvent. The effects of several factors such as pressure, time, and initiator concentration on polymer yield, morphology, and molecular weight were studied. FTIR, ¹H NMR, GPC, HPLC, DSC, TGA and SEM analyses were used to characterize the product and evaluate the effect of mentioned factors. The results indicated a prominent influence of SC-CO₂ pressure on the product. Applying a green solvent, such as SC-CO₂ allows us to produce a clean polymer with lower molecular weight and higher environmental compatibility.