This work presents the application of near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to the in-line monitoring of particle size in styrene suspension polymerizations. Results show that NIR spectra are sensitive to the different operational conditions and may provide information about particle dynamics and suspension stability. It is observed that the manipulation of important variables to the control of particle size distributions, such as stirrer speed and stabilizer concentration, does not cause any change to the polymerization kinetics. Finally, suspension polymerization experiments are carried out with in-line spectrophotometer, in order to obtain a specified average particle size, and results point out to potential industrial applications.
Near infrared; particle size; polymerization; suspension; in-line
