Purification Process of Poly Methyl Methacrylate Products Made with Suspension Polymerization Techniques

Abstract

Abstract Poly Methyl Methacrylate (PMMA) is a commodity polymer produced from Methyl Methacrylate (MMA) monomer. This applied in various industries such as automotive and in the manufacture of artificial bones. Suspension polymerization techniques are able to produce polymer powders in micron size, uniform molecular weight and desired particle size distribution. This research was initiated by conducting polymerization process by heating Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA, dispersant)/aqua dest (H2O) mixture accompanied by nitrogen gas purging and stirring, then MMA and Benzoyl Peroxide (BPO, initiator) was added. The results of the polymerization process produce PMMA products in the form of powders which are suspected to still contain MMA, BPO, and PVA so that the washing process is required for PMMA products. Therefore, PMMA products resulting from the polymerization process are washed with water solvent with stirring, then the results of washing PMMA products are filtered and dried. The results of final PMMA products in the form of white powder which are then analyzed using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed that product there is still a residual MMA. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis which results produce spheres of varying size and average particle size of 64.45 µm. Particle Size Analyzer result presents the average size of 62.05 µm.