A STUDY ON POLYMER-POLYMER INTERACTIONS THROUGH MIXING CALORIMETRY

The aim of this work is to describe the most recent achievements in th e field of the physical chemistry of mixing. The systems studied have been classified according to the amount of thermic effect due to the b lending and its interpretation. When polystyrene (PS) and poly(alpha-m ethylstyrene) (P alpha MS) are blended, the interaction is weak and De lta(mix)H is close to zero. The presence of polar atoms and/or groups increases the stability of the blend and, therefore, Delta(mix)H becom es more negative. Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), poly(methyl acrylate) (P MA), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(vinylacetate) (PVAc), w hen mixed to form binary systems, show large differences from their pr operties when pure. If hydrogen bonding takes place, the interactions are readily detected and a large effect is calorimetrically determined . Cellulose diacetate (CDA) and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) have been studied as an example of a strongly interacting system.