Abstract
In this work, alkali soluble resin (ASR) was evaluated as a surfactant in the emulsion polymerization of butyl methacrylate (BMA). Kinetic analysis indicated that the ASR surfactant retarded the reaction rate and reduced the average number of radicals per latex particle. Since the particle nucleation period proceeds until the disappearance of droplets, Interval II does not exist in this system. Experimental results show that the particle number depends on the 0.31 and 0.51 powers of the ASR and KPS concentration, respectively. The particle size distribution of the latex becomes broad with the increase of the ASR concentration in the emulsion polymerization. This phenomenon explains why the period of the particle nucleation is proportional to the ASR concentration used in the reaction.