Radiation-chemical synthesis of thermosensitive copolymers based on the vinylbutyl ether and their complexing and emulgating abilities

Novel water-soluble thermosensitive copolymers of vinyl butyl ether (VBE) with vinyl ether of ethyleneglycol (VEEG) and N-vinylpyrrolidone (NVP) and ternary copolymers based on VBE, 2-hydroxyethylacrylate (HEA) and acrylic acid (AA) were synthesized by γ-induced radiation copolymerization. The composition of copolymers and average molecular weight of copolymers were determined using NMR 13C-spectroscopy and gel-permeation chromatography. It was shown that aqueous solutions of VBE–VEEG, VBE–NVP, VBE–HEA–AA have lower critical solution temperature (LCST) depending on copolymer composition. The complexation of copolymers with polyacrylic acid (PAA) was studied by turbidimetry method. Critical pH value of complexation (pHcrit.) was used as the criterion of complexing ability. The effect of composition and concentration of copolymers, as well as pH of medium on the formation of IPC was investigated. The effect of VBE–VEEG copolymers of different compositions on the stability of model hexane–water emulsions was studied. It was determined that the regulation of hydrophilic–hydrophobic balance of macrochains and copolymer concentration allows effectively influence on the stability of hexane–water emulsions.