Study on the stability of N-(isopropylacrylamide) in the inverse emulsion using different solvents as the continuous phase

  • Xinrui Li
  • , Zhongwei Ge
  • , Hongjun Yang
  • , Qimin Jiang
  • , Bibiao Jiang
  • , Sridhar Komarneni
  • , Wenyan Huang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Water-soluble monomer NIPAM was synthesized to obtain PNIPAM particles with controlled morphology and high molecular weight using inverse emulsion polymerization. Inverse emulsions are generally less stable than traditional emulsions, making the investigation of stable inverse emulsion systems crucial for the successful preparation of polymers. The stability of inverse emulsions formed by aromatic and aliphatic oil phases varies significantly under different conditions. After comparing the effects of various oil phases on the stability of N-(isopropylacrylamide) (NIPAM) emulsions, aliphatic liquid paraffin and aromatic liquid anisole were selected as the oil phases. Two types of inverse emulsions were prepared using a composite emulsifier formed by mixing Span 85 and Tween 80. This study investigated the effects of various factors, including the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) value, water-oil volume ratio, temperature, and monomer concentration of different composite emulsifiers on emulsion performance. The type of emulsion was judged by the phase dilution method and the conductivity method, while emulsion stability was evaluated through centrifugal coefficient analysis. Different experimental conditions exhibited distinct effects on the two types of inverse emulsions with varying oil phases. Our research has demonstrated that liquid paraffin exhibited superior stability when utilized as the oil phase in NIPAM inverse emulsion. When the HLB of the emulsifier blend is 4.4, the emulsion temperature is maintained at 25°C, and the volume fraction of the oil phase reaches 80 vol% while the centrifugal stability of the emulsion surpasses 90 %. Furthermore, increase in N-(isopropylacrylamide) concentration and Na2SO4 concentration was found to decrease the stability of both inverse emulsions using different oils, however, this decline was notably more pronounced in anisole-based formulations compared to those utilizing liquid paraffin.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number139151
JournalColloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects
Volume731
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 20 2026

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Surfaces and Interfaces
  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
  • Colloid and Surface Chemistry

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