Solubility behavior of amphiphilic sulfonated copolymers based on styrene–stearyl methacrylate and styrene–stearyl cinnamate

Abstract

Amphiphilic polymers have found many applications, so many types of these copolymers have been prepared. Specifically, sulfonated polystyrene acts, for example, as a flocullant or dispersant of petroleum asphaltenes as a function of its hydrophilic-hydrophobic balance. However, when changing the sulfonation degree, looking for the best performance, the solubility also changes, and sometimes it is responsible for making the polymer unsuitable for any application. Therefor, this work investigates in detail the changes in the solubility range of copolymers based on styrene-stearyl methacrylate and styrene-stearyl cinnamate with different molar compositions and different sulfonation degrees. The copolymers were synthesized and characterized by 1 H-NMR, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. In the range of compositions analyzed, with increasing content of long hydrocarbon chains, not only the displacement of the solubility in solvents with lower solubility parameter (d), but also the broadening of the solubility range was observed. In general, the solubility was directly related to the sulfonic group content, but there appeared to be an influence of the randomness of the sulfonation reactions along the chains. V C 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43112.

Flocculation of Asphaltenes by Polymers: Influence of Polymer Solubility Conditions

“…The results of qualitative solubility shown in Table indicate the less hydrophilic character of PS in relation to the modified samples, since the solubility was restricted to solvents with solubility parameters lower than 19.3 MPa 1/2 . Consequently, the increase of the sulfonation degree contributed to reduce the polymer’s hydrophobicity, as expected for this modification. , …”

“…Consequently, the increase of the sulfonation degree contributed to reduce the polymer's hydrophobicity, as expected for this modification. 49,50 Energy & Fuels It can also be observed that the sample PSS6, for being more hydrophilic, was soluble in a parameter range up to ∼21.4 MPa 1/2 . All the PSS samples were soluble in the interval from 18.7 to 20.9 MPa 1/2 , indicating this was the best interval to select the suitable conditions for the objectives of this study.…”

Asphaltene Aggregation: Influence of Composition of Copolymers Based on Styrene-Stearyl Methacrylate and Styrene-Stearyl Cinnamate Containing Sulfate Groups

“…Asphaltic residue was donated by Petrobras (source: Duque de Caxias Refinery); 99.5% n -heptane (used as received) and technical grade toluene (distilled at 100 °C and dried under silica) were supplied by Vetec Química Fina (Duque de Caxias); and tetrahydrofuran HPLC/Spectro grade (used as received) was supplied by Tedia Brasil (São Paulo). The copolymers based on styrene-stearyl methacrylate and styrene-stearyl cinnamate, sulfonated and unsulfonated (Figure ), were synthesized and characterized in a previous work, and their specifications are reported in Table .…”

Effects of Styrene Ionomers on the Dispersion of Asphaltenes in Crude Heavy Oil

“…This can be understood as follows: as the concentration of sulfonic acid groups in the SSA copolymer increases, the copolymer has more heteroatoms that can interact with the functional groups of asphaltenes. ,,, As a result, the interactions between SSA copolymers and asphaltenes become more effective. At the same time, as the degree of sulfonation increases, the hydrophobicity of the polymer, related directly to solubility, decreases, ,,,,, which must also be taken into account in understanding this result. Furthermore, the SSA copolymers can be carefully proposed to precipitate more asphaltenes and light-reducing materials (e.g.…”

“…28,39,41,111 As a result, the interactions between SSA copolymers and asphaltenes become more effective. At the same time, as the degree of sulfonation increases, the hydrophobicity of the polymer, related directly to solubility, decreases, 28,39,41,92,111,112 which must also be taken into account in understanding this result. Furthermore, the SSA copolymers can be carefully proposed to precipitate more asphaltenes and light-reducing materials (e.g.…”