New water-soluble polymers for surface applications

Abstract

The main objective of this work, which was the synthesis of water-soluble polymers for scale formation inhibition on stainless steel surfaces, has been achieved. Following an introduction and discussion of the background of the work (Chapter 1), the synthesis and characterisation of various monomers, norbomenes with alkylene ether side chains terminated by trialkyl ammonium salts, is described (Chapter 2). These monomers were polymerised to give water-soluble materials, as described in Chapter 3. The nature of the polymers involved and the development of special techniques for their characterisation is explained in Chapter 4. The amphiphilic water-soluble polymers prepared were used as additives in a detergent solution for scale inhibition tests. The variation in the structures of the polymers prepared allowed the study of the effects of different factors on scale inhibition, including the molecular weights of the polymers, the lengths of the alkylene ether side chains, and the nature of the trialkyl ammonium salt functionality. Most of the materials synthesised had an inhibiting effect on scale formation on the stainless steel substrate, in that treated surfaces allowed an easier cleaning of the samples. This study allowed the identification of a polymer structure showing good properties for scale inhibition, which may provide a lead for future development.