Polyacrylamide

Structural formula
General
Surname	Polyacrylamide
other names	Poly (2-propenamide)
CAS number	9003-05-8
Monomer	Acrylamide
Molecular formula of the repeating unit	C 3 H 5 NO
Molar mass of the repeating unit	71.08 g mol −1
properties
Physical state	firmly
density	0.75–0.95 g cm −3 (20 ° C)
safety instructions
GHS labeling of hazardous substances no classification available H and P phrases H: see above P: see above
As far as possible and customary, SI units are used. Unless otherwise noted, the data given apply to standard conditions .

Polyacrylamide (PAM) is a polymer of acrylamide .

Polyacrylamide can be produced from acrylamide in an aqueous solution by radical polymerisation . The reaction can e.g. B. ammonium persulfate (APS) initiated as a radical starter and catalyzed by tetramethylethylenediamine (TEMED) .

Polyacrylamide is water-soluble or at least it is swollen by water. Dilute aqueous solutions of polyacrylamides with low molar masses have a higher viscosity than pure water. When adding small amounts of polyacrylamide with a high molar mass to water, a gel is formed with a consistency that is roughly the same as that of jelly .

In the unpolymerized form, acrylamide is a neurotoxin , in the polymerized form it is harmless.

application

• Polyacrylamide is used as a gel in polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis .
• It is used as a gel former in the cosmetics industry.
• It is used as an aid in oil production (tertiary oil production, polymer flooding).
• Copolymers with cationic esterquats are used as retention aids in paper manufacture and as flocculants in wastewater engineering .
• Copolymers with acrylic acid , especially when they are crosslinked with polyvalent acrylates, are used as superabsorbents, for example in diapers .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Polyacrylamide data sheet (PDF) from Carl Roth , accessed on April 9, 2010.
2. ↑ This substance has either not yet been classified with regard to its hazardousness or a reliable and citable source has not yet been found.
3. ^ Arnold Willmes, Pocket Book Chemical Substances , Harri Deutsch, Frankfurt (M.), 2007.