Rheology of sterically stabilized dispersions of poly(methyl methacrylate) in aliphatic hydrocarbons

Abstract

Monodisperse suspensions of poly(methyl methacrylate) in n-tetradecane were prepared with mean particle diameters ranging from 0.4 to 4.5 µ. The dispersions were sterically stabilized with an amphipathic polymer in which the soluble stabilizing component was the hexamer of 12-hydroxy-stearic acid. Preliminary rheological and related data indicate the presence of a stabilizing barrier on the particles which is more than sufficient to overcome the interparticle Van der Waals attractions.