Preparation and characterization of crosslinked polymer beads with tunable pore morphology

Crosslinked polymer beads with tunable pore morphology were prepared by suspension polymerization of styrene (St) and divinylbenzene (DVB) with polypropylene in combination with toluene as co-porogens. The effect of DVB content on the pore morphology was investigated by changing DVB amount in monomer mixture. The results indicated that the specific surface area, the total pore area, and the total pore volume increased with increasing DVB content of polymer beads. Moreover, high-DVB concentration was favorable to produce more micropores and mesopores. At a given DVB concentration, the volume ratio of co-porogen/DVB has significant impact on the pore morphology in crosslinked polymer beads. As the co-porogen amount was increased, the specific surface area, the total pore area, and the total pore volume were dramatically increased, furthermore, the pore size distribution derived from Hg intrusion shifted toward macropore. Overall, the present article provided a novel route to prepare crosslinked polymer beads with tunable pore morphology. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011