Direct Observations of Ordered Nanoporosity in Deprotonated 2-(Acetoacetoxy)ethyl Methacrylate (AAEMA–) Polymer: Preliminary Results

Polymers based on 2-(acetoacetoxy)ethyl methacrylate, charged with iron or sodium, were thermally heated at 150 degrees C. Both polymers were studied and characterized by SEM, TEM, STEM microscopy and SAEDF techniques. The morphological investigation revealed that, upon heating, both polymers were endowed with microholes, sometimes perfectly ordered, whose dimensions varied from 4-5 nm to approximately 500 nm. In the case of an Fe-containing copolymer, unexpectedly, iron did not fill in the cavities, thus implying that it was "dispersed" in the polymeric matrix. Electronic microdiffraction documented that both polymers exhibited a proto-crystallinity, likely induced by thermal heating.