Synthesis of polyacrylonitrile based nanoparticles via aqueous dispersion polymerization

In this study, the aqueous dispersion polymerization of acrylonitrile, itaconic acid, and methyl acrylate has been successfully carried out using PVA as a steric stabilizer in the mixture of water and DMF medium. The formation and characterization of PAN-based nanoparticles were studied by the polymerization time and concentration of PVA. The chemical structure of the synthesized terpolymer of poly (AN-co-IA-co-MA) nanoparticle was confirmed using1H NMR, FTIR, and GPC spectra. All of the synthesized particles have the nonsmooth surface and relatively spherical shaped. The particle sizes were affected by the concentration of stabilizer concentration and reaction time. The stable PAN-based nanoparticles were successfully obtained when the concentration of the PVA increased from 5 to 15 wt% relative to the monomer and the average particle size decreased from 250 to 87 nm. The effects of PVA on the stabilization of particles and size variation are similar to the conventional stabilizers in the dispersion polymerization.