Welcome to the Web Pages of the Emulsion Polymers Institute (EPI) at Lehigh University
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Our Mission
 | To develop and carry out broad-based programs of fundamental and applied research in the area of polymer colloids |
| To educate scientists and engineers in this area |
BREAKING NEWS:
The 2002 33rd Annual Short Course "Advances in Emulsion Polymerization and Latex Technology" will be held at Lehigh University, June 3-7, 2002. A full course listing and registration form is now available from the Courses/Seminar link to the left. There is still space available for participants in the course. Click on the Courses/Seminar button on the left to go to the registration material on the web.
Overview of EPI
Polymer latexes, also known as emulsion polymers, are colloidal dispersions of submicroscopic polymer particles in a continuous medium. The best known example is the natural latex produced by the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) which is still an important source of one of the world's most widely used polymers. Man-made latexes, comprising dispersions of polymer particles in water, are used in synthetic rubber, impact polymers, adhesives, latex paints, paper coatings, carpet backing, binders for nonwoven fabrics, printing inks, reinforcement of cement mortar, and immunodiagnostic tests. Inverse latexes, comprising dispersions of hydrophilic polymers in organic media, are prepared for their polymer which is used in flocculation of colloidal dispersions, water and mineral flotation, and enhanced oil recovery.
The Emulsion Polymers Institute (EPI) was formed in 1975. Its aim is to carry out interdisciplinary research to gain fundamental information on the preparation and properties of polymer latexes and also to discover and develop industrial applications. The Emulsion Polymers Liaison Program provides a two-way channel of communication between the Institute and its corporate sponsors through which the industrial members are informed of the Institute's research findings and the Institute learns which topics are of most interest to the industrial members.
The research activities of the Institute include: study of the polymerization mechanisms and kinetics of conventional, seeded, semi-continuous, living free radical, miniemulsion, and dispersion polymerizations, with special emphasis on the use of reaction calorimetry to determine the kinetics of these processes; investigations into the development of particle morphology in composite latex systems through both theoretical and experimental means; the preparation of large-particle-size monodisperse latexes by successive seeding and dispersion polymerization; the role of conventional, mixed, polymeric, and reactive surfactants in emulsion polymerization; the characterization of latex particles through methods such as capillary hydrodynamic fractionation (CHDF), microscopy (scanning and transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and optical microscopy), NMR, and conductometric titration analysis; the study of the mechanism of latex film formation (also for latex blends) and crosslinking from latexes having specific reactive groups which are capable of undergoing crosslinking reactions; the effect of agitation on reactor scale-up; among other research topics.
The Institute's staff comprises faculty members from the Departments of Chemistry, Physics, Chemical Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering, research scientists/engineers, post-doctoral fellows, and visiting research scientists from many parts of the world, together with 15 full-time graduate students drawn primarily from the Departments of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.
The Institute's support comes from the Liaison Program
(29 member companies
from all over the world), contract and grant research from government agencies and
industry, and profits of its annual summer short courses,
The Emulsion Polymers Institute is located in Iacocca Hall on the Mountaintop Campus of Lehigh University. Lehigh is an independent, non-denominational, coeducational university. Founded in 1865, it now enrolls approximately 4300 undergraduates and it has 1800 students in programs offered by the Graduate School. The main campus occupies approximately 200 acres and is situated on the north slope of South Mountain overlooking the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton.
Contact Information
For further Information concerning the Emulsion Polymers Institute, Please Contact:
- Telephone: (610) 758-3590 FAX: (610) 758-5880
- Postal address:
- Emulsion Polymers Institute
- Lehigh University
111 Research Drive
Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA
- Electronic mail:
- Professor Mohamed S. El-Aasser, Dean, P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science; Director, EPI
- E-Mail: mse0@lehigh.edu
- Home Page: Dean El-Aasser's Home Page
- Internet: P.C. Rossin College of Engineering Home Page
- Dr. Eric Daniels, Executive Director
- E-Mail: Eric.Daniels@Lehigh.edu
- Dr. David Sudol, Associate Director, Research
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E-Mail: eds2@lehigh.edu
Webmaster: Eric.Daniels@Lehigh.edu
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