@article{SchlappaBresselReichetal.2023,
  author    = {Schlappa, Stephanie and Bressel, Lena and Reich, Oliver and M{\"u}nzberg, Marvin},
  title     = {Advanced particle size analysis in high-solid-content polymer dispersions using photon density wave spectroscopy},
  series = {Polymers},
  volume    = {15},
  journal   = {Polymers},
  number    = {15},
  publisher = {MDPI},
  address   = {Basel},
  issn      = {2073-4360},
  doi       = {10.3390/polym15153181},
  pages     = {17},
  year      = {2023},
  abstract  = {High-solid-content polystyrene and polyvinyl acetate dispersions of polymer particles with a 50 nm to 500 nm mean particle diameter and 12-55\% (w/w) solid content have been produced via emulsion polymerization and characterized regarding their optical and physical properties. Both systems have been analyzed with common particle-size-measuring techniques like dynamic light scattering (DLS) and static light scattering (SLS) and compared to inline particle size distribution (PSD) measurements via photon density wave (PDW) spectroscopy in undiluted samples. It is shown that particle size measurements of undiluted polystyrene dispersions are in good agreement between analysis methods. However, for polyvinyl acetate particles, size determination is challenging due to bound water in the produced polymer. For the first time, water-swelling factors were determined via an iterative approach of PDW spectroscopy error (X-2) minimization. It is shown that water-swollen particles can be analyzed in high-solid-content solutions and their physical properties can be assumed to determine the refractive index, density, and volume fraction in dispersion. It was found that assumed water swelling improved the reduced scattering coefficient fit by PDW spectroscopy by up to ten times and particle size determination was refined and enabled. Particle size analysis of the water-swollen particles agreed well with offline-based state-of-the-art techniques.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{SchlappaBrenkerBresseletal.2021,
  author    = {Schlappa, Stephanie and Brenker, Lee Josephine and Bressel, Lena and Hass, Roland and M{\"u}nzberg, Marvin},
  title     = {Process characterization of polyvinyl acetate emulsions applying inline photon density wave spectroscopy at high solid contents},
  series = {Polymers / Molecular Diversity Preservation International},
  volume    = {13},
  journal   = {Polymers / Molecular Diversity Preservation International},
  number    = {4},
  publisher = {MDPI},
  address   = {Basel},
  issn      = {2073-4360},
  doi       = {10.3390/polym13040669},
  pages     = {15},
  year      = {2021},
  abstract  = {The high solids semicontinuous emulsion polymerization of polyvinyl acetate using poly (vinyl alcohol-co-vinyl acetate) as protective colloid is investigated by optical spectroscopy. The suitability of Photon Density Wave (PDW) spectroscopy as inline Process Analytical Technology (PAT) for emulsion polymerization processes at high solid contents (>40\% (w/w)) is studied and evaluated. Inline data on absorption and scattering in the dispersion is obtained in real-time. The radical polymerization of vinyl acetate to polyvinyl acetate using ascorbic acid and sodium persulfate as redox initiator system and poly (vinyl alcohol-co-vinyl acetate) as protective colloid is investigated. Starved-feed radical emulsion polymerization yielded particle sizes in the nanometer size regime. PDW spectroscopy is used to monitor the progress of polymerization by studying the absorption and scattering properties during the synthesis of dispersions with increasing monomer amount and correspondingly decreasing feed rate of protective colloid. Results are compared to particle sizes determined with offline dynamic light scattering (DLS) and static light scattering (SLS) during the synthesis.},
  language  = {en}
}