Determination of phase separation in polymer blends using gas chromatography

Gas chromatography has been used to determine the temperature of phase separation in blends of polystyrene with poly(vinyl methyl ether). The results gave good agreement with other methods and extend the range of use of gas chromatograph in polymer chemistry. Based on the experimental evidence it may be concluded that the range of applicability of gas chromatography in polymer chemistry can be extended to the direct determination of phase separation temperatures in polymer blends. Despite the fact that construction of a phase diagram by this technique would be tedious since a separate column would be required for each point, the method is especially useful since, in contrast to other methods, relatively straightforward additional measurements allow the thermodynamic parameters characterizing the system to be calculated in addition to the phase behaviour.