Dynamic Mechanical and Morphological Studies of Styrene-co-Methacrylate and Sulfonated Polystyrene Ionomers Containing Aliphatic Dicarboxylate Salts

This study examined the effects of the sodium salts of aliphatic dicarboxylic acids (DCAs) on the dynamic mechanical properties and morphology of two sets of poly(styrene-co-sodium methacrylate) (MNa) and poly(styrene-co-sodium styrenesulfonate) (SNa) ionomers. When the DCA content was relatively low, the ionic moduli of the MNa and SNa ionomers increased but the matrix and cluster glass transition temperature ($T_g$) did not change significantly. The increasing ionic modulus was almost independent of the type of the ionic groups of the ionomer, and the chain length of DCAs. When a large amount of the sodium succinate (DCA4) was added to the MNa and SNa ionomers, the ionic moduli of the two ionomers increased strongly but the matrix and cluster $T_g increased slightly and significantly, respectively. In the case of sodium hexadecanedioate (DCA 16), DCA 16 increased the ionic moduli of the two ionomers. The addition of DCA16 changed the matrix and cluster $T_g of the MNa ionomer slightly, but decreased the cluster $T_g$ of the SNa ionomer significantly with no change in the matrix $T_g$. In addition, the DCA-containing ionomers showed an X-ray diffraction peak indicating the presence of ordered domains of DC As in the ionomers. Hence, DCA4 acts mainly as a reinforcing filler in MNa and SNa systems. In the case of DCA 16, it initially behaved like a filler but also functioned as a preferential plasticizer for the clusters at high content.