| CPC C09D 5/033 (2013.01) [B29C 64/153 (2017.08); B33Y 10/00 (2014.12); B33Y 70/00 (2014.12); C09D 5/031 (2013.01); C09D 183/04 (2013.01); B29K 2023/12 (2013.01); B29K 2995/0063 (2013.01)] | 17 Claims |
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1. A method comprising:
providing a mixture comprising a thermoplastic polymer, a nucleating agent, a carrier fluid that is immiscible with the thermoplastic polymer, and optionally an emulsion stabilizer;
wherein the carrier fluid is selected from the group consisting of a silicone oil, a fluorinated silicone oil, a perfluorinated silicone oil, a polyethylene glycol, an alkyl-terminal polyethylene glycol, tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether, a paraffin, a liquid petroleum jelly, a vison oil, a turtle oil, a soya bean oil, perhydrosqualene, a sweet almond oil, a calophyllum oil, a palm oil, a parleam oil, a grapeseed oil, a sesame oil, a maize oil, a rapeseed oil, a sunflower oil, a cottonseed oil, an apricot oil, a castor oil, an avocado oil, a jojoba oil, an olive oil, a cereal germ oil, an ester of lanolic acid, an ester of oleic acid, an ester of lauric acid, an ester of stearic acid, a fatty ester, a fatty acid, a fatty alcohol, a polysiloxane modified with fatty acids, a polysiloxane modified with fatty alcohols, a polysiloxane modified with polyoxyalkylenes, and any combination thereof; and
wherein the nucleating agent comprises one or more members selected from the group consisting of a salt of benzoic acid, a sodium salt of an organophosphate, an organoclay, calcium carbonate, talc, a benzene trisamide, a nonitol derivative, 1,3:2,4-bis-O-(3,4-dimethylbenzylidene)-D-sorbitol, sodium 2,4,8,10-tetra-tert-butyl-12H-dibenzo[d,g][1,3,2]dioxaphosphocin-6-olate-6-oxide, bicyclo[2.2.1]heptane-2,3-dicarboxylic acid disodium salt, 2,2′-methylene-bis-(4,6-di-tert-butylphenyl) phosphate, and any combination thereof;
shearing the mixture at a temperature at or greater than a melting point or softening temperature of the thermoplastic polymer to emulsify a thermoplastic polymer melt in the carrier fluid;
cooling the mixture to below the melting point or softening temperature to form polymer particles comprising the thermoplastic polymer and the nucleating agent; and
separating the polymer particles from the carrier fluid, wherein the polymer particles separated from the carrier fluid comprise the thermoplastic polymer and the nucleating agent and have a crystallization temperature that is substantially the same as a crystallization temperature of the thermoplastic polymer.
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