Polymer diffusion in high-M/low-M hard-soft latex blends

This paper describes experiments that investigate the use of low glass transition temperature (Tg) latex particles consisting of oligomer to promote polymer diffusion in films formed from high molar mass polymer latex. The chemical composition of both polymers was similar. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) was used to follow the rate of polymer diffusion for samples in which the high molar mass polymer was labeled with appropriate donor and acceptor dyes. In these latex blends, the presence of the oligomer (with Mn = 24,000 g/mol, Mw/Mn = 2) was so effective at promoting the interdiffusion of the higher molar mass poly(butyl acrylate-co-methyl methacrylate; PBA/MMA = 1:1 by weight) polymer (with Mn = 43,00 g/mol, Mw/Mn = 3) that a significant amount of interdiffusion occurred during film drying. Additional polymer diffusion occurred during film aging and annealing, and this effect could be described quantitatively in terms of free-volume theory.