| Abstract: | Two new ethylene ionomers were synthesized, poly[ethylene-co-(5.4-mol-% 2-(4-carboxyphenoxy)ethyl methacrylate)] partially neutralized with Zn(II) (EMAA-BZnX), and poly[ethylene-co-(5.4 mol-% 2-(3-carboxypyridin-6-yloxy)ethyl methacrylate)] (EMAA-N) and its hydrochloride (EMAA-NHCl). Differential scanning calorimetric (DSC), X-ray diffraction, and dielectric and dynamic mechanical relaxation studies were made for the two ionomers to investigate the formation and structure of ionic aggregates. In EMAA-BZnX, DSC, dielectric and dynamic mechanical data suggest the formation of ionic aggregates in the neutralization range above 40%; X-ray diffraction data, however, did not show any ionic peak, while the ionic groups were not aggregated at all in EMAA-NHCl. From these results, the ion-aggregation in ionomers is discussed with respect to chemical structure and the nature of ionic groups. |
