Preferential adsorption of vinyl polymers in binary solvents

The current state of problems connected with the definition, theoretical interpretation and experimental determination of preferential adsorption of one solvent by a polymer in a binary solvent is discussed. The behavior of polymeric solutions in binary solvents is influenced considerably by the thermodynamic nature of the solvents and the mixture itself. The viscometric behavior of polymers in solvent mixtures has been reported in a series of papers, using polar and non-polar polymers. Interesting phenomena such as cosolvency, variations in unperturbed dimensions, and the influence of deviations on the rate of propagation of a polymer chain have been observed. The role of preferential adsorption is considered. Different techniques and theoretical approaches have been developed but the relation of these theories has rarely been critically discussed. The analysis of the application of some equations shows that actual theories need improvement to fit experimental data.