• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.340-344
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• 2006

We prepared porous cation exchange membrane using polystyrene such as, EPS (expanded polystyrene), SAN (styrene acrylonitrile copolymer) and HIPS (high impact polystyrene). These three kind of polystyrene were sulfonated by acetyl sulfate to make sulfonated porous cation exchange membrane such as, SEPS (sulfonated expanded polystyrene), SSAN (sulfonated styrene acrylonitrile copolymer)and SHIPS (sulfonated high impact polystyrene). SEM was employed to validate porous structure of membrane, and IR spectroscopy was used to validate sulfonation rate of ion exchange membrane. As a results, ion exchange capacity was increased with an amount of sulfuric acid in reactants and cation exchange membrane showed the selectivity to a cation and showed the exclusivity to an anion.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.11-15
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• 2003

In order to suppress a repulsive interfacial energy between hydrophilic clay and hydrophobic polymer matrix in preparing a polymer/clay nanocomposite, a third component of amphiphilic nature such as poly($\varepsilon$-caprolactone) (PCL) was introduced into the model system of styrene-acrylonitrile copolymers (SAN)/Na-montmorillonite. Once $\varepsilon$-caprolactone was polymerized in the presence of Na-rnontmorillonite, the successful ring-opening polymerization of $\varepsilon$-caprolactone and the well-developed exfoliated structure of PCL/Na-montmorillonite mixture were confirmed, Thereafter, SAN was melt-mixed with PCL/Na-montmorillonite nanocomposite, which resulted in that SAN matrix and PCL fraction were completely miscible to form homogeneous mixture with retention of the exfoliated state of Na-montmorillonite, exhibiting that PCL effectively stabilizes the repulsive polymer/clay interface and contributes the improvement of mechanical properties of the nanocomposites.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.165-170
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• 2005

In this study, high intensity ultrasound was employed to induce mechano-chemical degradation during melt mixing of polycarbonate (PC) and a series of styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) copolymers. It was confirmed that generation of macroradicals of constituent polymers can lead to in-situ copolymer formation by their mutual combination, which should be an efficient path to compatibilize immiscible polymer blends and stabilize their phase morphology in the absence of other chemical agents. Based on the effectiveness of the compatibilization by ultrasound assisted mixing process, we investigated the effects of viscosity ratio of PC and SAN and AN content in SAN on the compatibilization of PC/SAN blends. It was found that effectiveness of compatibilization is optimal when the AN content is in the range of favorable interaction with PC and the viscosity of the matrix is higher than that of the dispersed phase. In addition, changes in the interfacial tension between PC and SAN were assessed by examining relaxation spectra which were obtained from measuring rheological properties of ultrasonically treated blends.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.339-345
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• 2009

The graft copolymerization of acrylonitrile-EPDM-styrene (AES) was investigated under various reaction conditions such as the concentration of initiator, the content of diene and viscosity of EPDM, and the concentration of solvents. The conversion increased but the molecular weight and the rubber particle size decreased with the concentration of initiator. The graft ratio(GR) increased at low concentrations of the initiator but, after the maximum value, it gradually decreased with the concentration of initiator. Toluene as a single solvent gave the highest conversion and the mixture of ethyl benzene and toluene was better than toluene. The rubber particle size increased with the viscosity of EPDM and the graft ratio and the number of rubber particles with occluded SANs increased with the content of diene.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.225-231
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• 2004

High intensity ultrasound was irradiated to induce mechano-chemical degradation during melt processing of polycarbonate (PC) and styrene-co-acrylonitrile (SAN) in an intensive mixer. It was found that macroradicals of PC and SAM can be generated during ultrasound assisted melt processing; which, in turn, provides a useful route to achieve in-situ compatibilization for the blends of PC and SAM by their mutual coupling. Effectiveness of compatibilization was assessed by investigating phase morphology and mechanical properties of the blends. It was observed that domain size was reduced and the stability of morphology was well maintained even after annealing treatment of the blends. In audition, the enhancement of mechanical properties such as elongation at break and tensile strength was evident, which added further confirmation on the desirable feature that sonication of melt-blends is able to enhance intermolecular interaction by promoting chemical bonds between dissimilar polymers without use of any compatibilizers.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.372-376
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• 2012

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are considered as one of ideal nano-fillers in the field of composites with their excellent electrical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Therefore CNT composites are increasingly used in fabricating conductive materials, structural materials with high strength and low weight, and multifunctional materials. The main problem of the CNT composites is difficulty in the dispersion of CNT in the polymer matrix. In this study multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) were pretreated by the physical process utilizing a wrapping method. After the pretreatment polymer/MWNT nanocomposites were prepared by melt processing. The effect of functionalization MWNT by wrapping with styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) on the mechanical and electrical properties of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene resin (ABS)/MWNT composites was studied by comparing the properties of ABS mixed with the neat MWNT. Electrical and mechanical properties of ABS/MWNT nanocomposites were studied as a function of the functionalization and content of MWNT. The tensile strength of the ABS/MWNT nanocomposites increased, but the impact strength decreased. The polymer wrapping in ABS system has little effect on the improvement of electrical properties.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.375-380
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• 2009

Polyepichlorohydrin rubber was treated with sodium azide (Na$N_3$) to replace its chlorine by azide ($N_3$). Then, the azidated polyepichlorohydrin rubber (Az-PECH) was blended with thermoplastic styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer with the rubber/plastic ratio of 80/20, 70/30 and 60/40 (wt/wt). The miscibility, mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties as well as elastic recovery properties of the blends were evaluated by DMA (Dynamic Mechanical Analyzer) and tensile tests. When azidation level in azidated PECH was upto 50%, the blends exhibited excellent miscibility, manifested by a single $T_g$, and fairly good elastic recovery. When azidation level was 75%, the blends showed phase separation. The miscible Az-PECH/SAN blends exhibited typical thermoplastic elastomer like properties, ie. melt processibility and high extensibility as well as good elastic recovery rate. It was also observed from combustion test that higher energy is released with the increase in the azidation level of the Az-PECH in the blends.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.45-53
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• 2006

In this study, we prepared porous cation exchange membrane using polystyrene such as, EPS (expanded polystyrene), SAN (styrene acrylonitrile copolymer) and HIPS (high impactive polystyrene). These polystyrenes were sulfonated by acetyl sulfate to make porous cation exchange membrane such as, SEPS, SSAN, SHIPS. SEM was employed to confirm porous structure of membrane, and IR spectroscopy was used to confirm sulfonation rate of ion exchange membrane. Water and methanol content were also increased with amount of sulfuric acid in reactants. SSAN-20 showed the highest value in water and methanol content. Fixed ion concentration and conductivity was also increased with an amount of sulfuric acid in reactants. Methanol permeability for SEPS-20, SSAN-20, SHIPS-20 was found to be $1.326\;{\times}\;10^{-5}\;cm^2/s$, $1.527\;{\times}\;10^{-5}\;cm^2/s$ and $1.096\;{\times}\;10^{-5}\;cm^2/s$ respectively. From the result of electrodialysis experiment in 0.03 M $Pb(NO_3)_2$ aqueous solution, anion exclusion and cation selection effects were confirmed.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.113-118
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• 2015

To improve the methanol electro-oxidation in direct methanol fuel cells(DMFCs), Pt electrocatalysts embedded on porous carbon nanofibers(CNFs) were synthesized by electrospinning followed by a reduction method. To fabricate the porous CNFs, we prepared three types of porous CNFs using three different amount of a styrene-co-acrylonitrile(SAN) polymer: 0.2 wt%, 0.5 wt%, and 1 wt%, respectively. A SAN polymer, which provides vacant spaces in porous CNFs, was decomposed and burn out during the carbonization. The structure and morphology of the samples were examined using field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy and their surface area were measured using the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller(BET). The crystallinities and chemical compositions of the samples were examined using X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The electrochemical properties on the methanol electro-oxidation were characterized using cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Pt electrocatalysts embedded on porous CNFs containing 0.5 wt% SAN polymer exhibited the improved methanol oxidation and electrocatalytic stability compared to Pt/conventional CNFs and commercial Pt/C(40 wt% Pt on Vulcan carbon, E-TEK).

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.562-568
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• 2009

Electrospinning is a technique that produces sub-micron sized continuous fibers by electric force from polymer solutions or melts. Due to its versatile manufacturability and the cost effectiveness, this method has been recently adopted for the fabrication of one-dimensional materials. Here, we fabricated polyacrylonitrile (PAN) polymer fibers, from which uniform carbon fibers with diameters of 100-200 nm were obtained after carbonization at 800 $^{\circ}C$ in N$_2$. Special emphasis was directed to the influence of the phase separated polymer solution on the morphology and the microstructure of the resulting carbon fiber. The addition of poly(stylene-co-acrylonitile) (SAN) makes the polymer solution phase separated, which allows for the formation of internal pores by its selective elimination after electrospinning. XPS and Raman Spectroscopy were used to confirm the surface composition and the degree of carbonization. At the PAN:SAN = 50:50 in vol%, the uniform carbon fibers with diameters of 300$\sim$500 nm and surface area of 131.6 m$^2$g$^{-1}$ were obtained.