Abstract
Studies are reported of the temperature-dependence of the ESR spectrum of the nitroxide spin radical 4-(2-bromoacetamide)-2,2,6,6 tetramethyl-1-oxyl piperidine (BRAMO) dispersed in poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc), and PVDF/PMMA and PVAC/PMMA blends of varying composition. In PVDF/PMMA blends which show a single composition-dependent T sub g , the mobility of BRAMO is identical to that in pure PMMA. On the other hand, in PVAC/PMMA blends, the mobility of BRAMO corresonds to that in pure PVAC. The results suggest that (1) BRAMO selectively binds to polymers based on hydrogen bonding affinity, (2) the spin probe is sensitive to segmental motions on a length scale shorter than those which give rise to the glass transition, and (3) compatible polymer blends are heterogeneous on the length scale of the BRAMO probe ( approx 8.3 A). 19 ref.--AA