Size and Composition Studies of Core-Shell Latexes Using Flow and Thermal Field-Flow Fractionation

Abstract

Two field-flow fractionation (FFF) techniques, flow FFF and thermal FFF, have been used as complementary techniques in a study of core-shell latex particles. Different types of physicochemical information about the particles can be obtained since the fields used in the two techniques interact with different particle properties. The hydrodynamic diameters (and diameter distributions) of the latex particles were measured as a function of pH using flow FFF. Retention in thermal FFF was found to depend on shell composition. These FFF techniques, used together, are shown to be capable of characterizing both the physical size and shell composition of this important class of particles.