1991 Volume 48 Issue 2 Pages 105-110
The structure and thermal properties of copolymers of maleic anhydride and alkyl vinyl esters (CH2=CHOCOCnH2n+1, n=1 to 17) were investigated by X-ray diffraction and DSC. In spite of the perfect alternating sequence of the comonomers, the copolymers were glassy polymers because of the atacticity of vinyl esters in the polymer sequence. The glass transition temperatures of these polymers were almost in the same level near 130°C. X-Ray diffraction patterns suggested that the layered structure having tilted side chains was formed by aggregation between polar groups. On doping with tricresyl phosphate as a plasticizer, the spacing between the layers increased steeply in the polymer with such long side chain as vinyl stearate. This phenomenon suggests that the long alkyl ester copolymers can be intercalated with the plasticizers.
