Research Description:

Jonathan Rawlston

My research involves the development of a Monte Carlo model for miniemulsion polymer particles. Miniemulsion polymerization has two significant advantages over traditional emulsion polymerization. First, it is capable of producing nanoparticles with narrow particle size distributions as well as internal structures such as inorganic cores, liquid cores, and polymer blends. Second, miniemulsion polymerization uses environmentally benign water as the solvent, compared to the organic solvents used in traditional emulsion polymerization.

To properly understand the kinetics occurring within minemulsion particles, a stochastic model is being developed that encompasses length scales from the monomer radius of gyration to the particle diameter. A realistic scaling of diffusion rate with oligomer length has been achieved for single oligomers in monomer, an important step toward simulating more complex events such as termination and chain transfer. Once all necessary parameters have been tuned to match published experimental data, the model will be used to develop control strategies for attaining desired particle morphologies.

Page updated on: September 29, 2005