Rapid Determination of the Chemical Composition of Ethylene/Butadiene Copolymers Using FTIR Spectroscopy and Chemometrics. Issue 11 (3rd May 2018) - Boyron, Olivier
Abstract: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy by attenuated total reflection (ATR‐FTIR), combined with the partial least square (PLS) method provides a fast characterization of ethylene/butadiene copolymers' intricate composition. The PLS regression method is constructed to quantify ethylene, 1, 2‐butadiene (vinyl), trans ‐1, 4‐butadiene, and 1, 2‐cyclohexane units in the copolymer. These rings are formed by intramolecular cyclization during polymerization. The performance of PLS models is evaluated by comparing the result obtained by 13 C NMR and the model for three unknown samples. It is shown that the proposed method allows to accurately estimate the chemical composition of ethylene/butadiene copolymers in a much shorter time than NMR. Abstract : Ethylene/butadiene copolymers obtained with neodymium metallocene catalysts display an intricate microstructure . A rapid investigation method based on Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics tools is described for measuring the chemical composition of these polymers. A partial least squares regression, using NMR as a reference method, is adopted to construct quantitative models for chemical composition prediction.