Abstract: A method of enhancing hydrophilicity of a hydrophobic polymer material includes pre-treating the hydrophobic polymer material, comprising treating the hydrophobic polymer material with a first atmospheric pressure plasma discharge in a first atmosphere. The first atmosphere includes ammonia to obtain a pre-treated polymer material. The method includes treating the pre-treated polymer material with a second atmospheric pressure plasma discharge in a second atmosphere in which an aerosol of a carboxylic acid is introduced. A substrate is provided as well, the substrate including a hydrophobic polymer material having a modified interface, wherein the modified interface includes carboxylic functional groups grafted on the hydrophobic polymer material, the modified interface having a contact angle with water, which, measured after immersion in water at 20° C. for 3 days, is at least 25° less than a contact angle with water of the hydrophobic polymer material.

Abstract: A high melt strength polypropylene is formed using maleated polypropylene and a combination of coupling agents and acid neutralizers. The maleated polypropylene can be formed using multi-functional monomers. The high melt strength polypropylene can be useful for foaming, sheet extrusion thermoforming, extrusion blow molding, extrusion coating, fiber, film, and the like.

Abstract: A graft copolymer composition of a vinyl monomer and a functionalized vinylamine-containing base polymer and a method of preparing the graft copolymer. It also relates to a paper product made using the composition as a papermaking additive.

Abstract: This invention provides a rubber composition being excellent in the workability during production and the heat resistance and high in the storage elastic modulus (G?) and small in the loss tangent (tan ?), which is formed by compounding 1-60 parts by mass of a low-molecular weight conjugated diene-based polymer (B) having a weight average molecular weight as measured through a gel permeation chromatography and converted to polystyrene of 10,000-200,000 and a vinyl bond content in a conjugated diene compound portion of not less than 40% based on 100 parts by mass of a rubber component (A) comprised of at least one selected from the group consisting of natural rubber, polyisoprene rubber, styrene-butadiene copolymer rubber, polybutadiene rubber and isobutylene isoprene rubber, wherein the rubber component (A) comprises natural rubber and/or polyisoprene rubber and a proportion of styrene units in total of the low-molecular weight conjugated diene-based polymer (B) is less than 5% by mass.

Abstract: Anion-paired metallocene-containing compounds are generally provided, along with methods of making the same. In one embodiment, the anion-paired metallocene-containing compound includes a cationic metallocene moiety covalently connected to an organic functional group, and an anion paired to the cationic metallocene moiety. Generally, the cationic metallocene moiety comprises two cyclopentadienyl anions bound to a metal center in the oxidation state I.

Abstract: An at least two layer rotomolded article is described herein which may include a layer A and a layer B. Layer A can include an aliphatic polyester, a polyolefin, or a co- or ter-polymer that includes ethylene or styrene monomer, an unsaturated anhydride-containing monomer, epoxide-containing monomer, or carboxylic acid-containing monomer, and a (meth)acrylic ester monomer. Layer B can include a polyolefin and a polyester, or a co- or ter-polymer that includes an ethylene or a styrene monomer, an unsaturated anhydride-containing monomer, epoxide-containing monomer, or carboxylic acid-containing monomer, and a (meth)acrylic ester monomer.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for producing a polymer by efficiently removing residue of metals such as titanium, aluminum and lithium from a polymer solution containing the residue of these metals to successfully obtain a purified polymer solution containing a smaller amount of the metal residue and having satisfactory color tone and transparency, a polymer solution and a polymer obtained by the production method.

Abstract: Crosslinked pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) based on polymers of branched macromolecules each comprising a main chain and one or more sidechains pendent to the main chain, the constitutional units thereof originating from a) X wt % of one or more acrylic and/or methacrylic esters, with 80<=X<=99.5; b) Y wt % of radically copolymerizable monomers having at least one acid function, with 0.5<=Y<=15; c) Z wt % of vinyl compounds, with 0<=Z<=5, at least one sidechain pendent to the main chain having a number-average molar mass >=1000 g/mol, and the respective amounts of constitutional units originating from a), b) and c) can be the same in each case or differ by not more than 1%, and where a), b) and c) may in each case be the same or different monomers, have detachment properties which can be set independently of one another.

Abstract: Provided herein are microphase-separated materials including a plurality of block copolymers tethered together at their A-B junction points. The tethered-together block copolymers, referred to as a block copolymer bottlebrush, provide microphase-separated materials having smaller domain spacing than previously achievable using block copolymer systems.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for the separation of enantiomers or resolution of racemic mixtures using high surface area core-shell polymer beads. The present invention further relates to a core-shell functionalized polymer comprising a core which comprises copolymer made from monomers selected from non-aromatic acrylate, ethylene dimethacrylate and divinyl-benzene, a shell which comprises monomers selected from glycidyl ethers of methacrylate and a chiral selector selected from tartaric acid derivatives and amino acids.

Abstract: A modified acrylic block copolymer is obtained by a method comprising subjecting a block copolymer (C) to a reaction with an amine compound, wherein the block copolymer comprises a polymer block (A) comprising a (meth)acrylic acid ester unit (a) and a polymer block (B?) comprising a (meth)acrylic acid ester unit (b?), the (meth)acrylic acid ester unit (a) is structurally different from the (meth)acrylic acid ester unit (b?), thereby partly or entirely converting the (meth)acrylic acid ester unit (b?) into at least one selected from the group consisting of an N-substituted (meth)acrylamide unit (d), a (meth)acrylic acid unit (c), and an N-substituted bis((meth)acryl)amide unit (e).

Abstract: Methods are generally provided for preparing a polymeric composition that includes a grafted block copolymer. Methods are also generally provided for preparing a polymeric composition that includes a star block copolymer prepared from a central core molecule that includes a plurality of attachment moieties. Methods are also generally provided for preparing a polymeric composition that includes a linear block copolymer. Block copolymers are also generally provided. Multi-segmented linear block copolymers are also generally provided.

Abstract: A molded product with excellent transparency can be obtained by using a polymer (D) obtained by suspension polymerization of a monomer mixture (1) containing (a) to (c) below: (a) 5-60 mass % of a specific macromonomer; (b) 5-60 mass % of the raw material monomer of a homopolymer (B) that has a solubility parameter that is different by 0.25 or more from the solubility parameter of the macromonomer (a); and (c) 10-80 mass % of the raw material monomer of a homopolymer (C) that has a solubility parameter that is different by less than 0.25 from the solubility parameter of macromonomer (a).

Abstract: Described are block copolymers which have been prepared by controlled free radical polymerization. Also described is the use of said block copolymers as soil release agents in laundry processes and a process to produce said block copolymers. Further described is a method for easier releasing soil from textiles in laundry processes and a detergent containing said block copolymers.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for producing polyacrylate adhesive compounds with a narrow molar mass distribution by means of a radical polymerization and a subsequent increase of the molar masses by reacting with bis- or multi-dienyl compounds, in particular with ?,?-bis-dienyl compounds, in order to increase the cohesion in particular.

Abstract: A polymeric molecule having the formula: X—[C(A)2C(B)(B?)]n-Q[CY?C(Z)(Z?)] or [C(A)2=C(B)]n-Q[C(Y)(Y?)—C(Z)(Z?)]—X?, wherein A is either H or F; B and B? are either H, F, or Cl, and are not necessarily the same; X and X? are Br, Cl or I (and are not necessarily the same); Y and Y? are F, Br, Cl or I (and are not necessarily the same); and wherein Z and Z? are F, Br, Cl or I (and are not necessarily the same); Q is optional and is either oxygen (O) or sulfur (S); and n is at least 1.

Abstract: An olefin resin having requirements (I) to (VI) is provided: (I) a grafted olefin polymer containing a main chain with an ethylene/?-olefin copolymer and a side chain with a propylene polymer; (II) the ratio P wt % of propylene polymer is from 5 to 60 wt %; (III) when the ratio of the amount of a component(s) having a peak temperature of a differential elution curve as measured by CFC using o-dichlorobenzene of less that 65° C., to the amount of (?) taken as E wt %, the value a represented by an equation (Eq-1), is 1.4 or more; (IV) the melting point (Tm) is 120 to 165° C. and the glass transition temperature (Tg) is ?80 to ?30° C., as measured by DSC; (V) the hot xylene-insoluble content is less than 3 wt %; and, (VI) the limiting viscosity as measured in decalin at 135° C. is 0.5 to 5.0 dl/g.

Abstract: Preparing propylene polymer compositions comprising 50 to 90% by weight of a propylene (co)polymer, and 10 to 50% by weight of an ethylene copolymer. The polymerization process includes, in the presence of a catalyst system: (i) a first step of polymerizing propylene to produce the propylene (co)polymer; and (ii) a successive gas-phase polymerization step performed in the presence of the propylene (co)polymer, ethylene, and one or more ?-olefins to produce the ethylene copolymer. The catalyst system contains the product obtained by contacting: (a) a solid catalyst component comprising at least two internal electron donor compounds, a succinate and a 1,3-diether; (b) an aluminum hydrocarbyl compound, and (c) optionally, an external electron donor compound.

Abstract: The present invention provides a pigment dispersant that exhibits high fine dispersibility, stability, and fluidity in a small amount, a pigment dispersion liquid including the pigment dispersant, and a process of producing the pigment dispersant and pigment dispersion liquid. The pigment dispersant contains as a main component, a graft copolymer formed through living radical polymerization using two or more monomers containing including a methacrylate A having an acidic group or a basic group and a methacrylate-based macromonomer B having a methacrylate residue at one terminal of a particular polymer chain that has a molecular weight of from 500 to 5000. A ratio of a total molar number of the methacrylate-based monomers relative to 1 mol of a polymerization-initiating compound in the raw material monomers is from 20 to 50 mol. A ratio of the B component-derived polymer chain to the graft copolymer is from 50 to 90 mass %.

Abstract: A method for the preparation of block copolymers including at least one high vinyl segment, the method comprising (i) charging into a reactor a diene monomer in a hydrocarbon solvent, a catalytically effective amount of anionic initiator, and an oligomeric oxolanyl propane, whereby the reactor is optionally cooled; (ii) allowing the diene monomer to polymerize at a peak polymerization temperature of at least about 18° C. and less than about 60° C. to form a first block where the vinyl content is at least about 50 percent by weight; (iii) after step (ii), charging into the reactor a vinyl aromatic monomer, whereby the reactor is optionally heated to a temperature up to about 60° C.; (iv) allowing the vinyl aromatic monomer to polymerize to form a second block; and (v) optionally charging into the reactor a quenching agent.