Determination of monomer conversion in methacrylate-based polymer monoliths fixed in a capillary column by pyrolysis-gas chromatography.

Monomer conversion and the resultant copolymer composition of polymer monolith columns are important factors for controlling column characteristics. We propose a new method to determine monomer conversion to a polymer monolith fixed in a capillary column using pyrolysis-gas chromatography. Small pieces of a poly(butyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate (BMA-co-EDMA)) monolith column were pyrolyzed at 450°C with poly(ethyl methacrylate) as a non-volatile internal standard. The monomer conversions were estimated from the corresponding relative peak intensities in the pyrogram. It was determined that the conversion of EDMA was significantly greater than that of BMA in a low-conversion UV-polymerized poly(BMA-co-EDMA) monolithic capillary column.